Pride Comes Before The Fall
by Snafu the Great
Summary: A 'Ranma-gets-abandoned' fanfic, only with a dark twist. Ranma is abandoned by his parents, the Tendou family and the Amazons following a rematch against Herb. Final half of the alternate ending has been added. Story Complete.
1. Prologue

Pride Comes Before The Fall

A Ranma ½ Fanfiction

By Snafu the Great

Snafu's Legal BS Disclaimer: All characters and events are the property of Rumiko Takahashi. After reading several fanfics in which Ranma is disowned, betrayed and stabbed in the back, I decided to take the idea into a different direction, in which Ranma declares war on those who abandoned him. This is a revenge fic. It is also a **very, very dark fanfic**. There is major character bashing inside (Kasumi included), as well as several character deaths, so you have been warned, and don't flame me.

_Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall - _Proverbs 16:18

_**Prologue**_

Nerima Ward General Hospital.

Inside a waiting room, five persons – the one man and the four women – sat in anticipation in front of the operating rooms. Compared to the person who was inside the operating rooms, the five had gotten off incredibly light.

Three hours had passed since the Tendous and Saotomes had passed judgement on one of their own.

Three hours had passed since they were nearly killed at the hands of an enraged Ranma Saotome, the end result of trying to preserve their own honor. In preserving their honor by forsaking Ranma, the former Saotome had nearly killed them all in a fit of rage.

With the exception of Kasumi, each member of the Tendou and Saotome family had numerous levels of injuries. Soun's nose was broken and was bandaged. Nabiki's lip was busted from where Ranma had slapped her. Akane had numerous welts and bruises from head to toe. Nodoka also had a busted lip, her hair now cut short as a result of her disowned son's near-murderous antics.

But Genma had the worst of it.

Ranma had nearly killed Genma with the Saotome katana, which was why he was in surgery.

It had all started with a rematch from the Dragon Prince. Then outside interference from both Ryouga Hibiki and Mousse had given Herb the opportunity to lock in Ranma's curse with the Ladle and to KO the haughty Saotome.

By the time Ranma had regained consciousness, Ryouga had already notified the Tendous and Ranma's parents about what had happened, while Mousse did the same with Cologne and Shampoo.

Then all hell broke lose when they passed sentence on Ranma...

* * *

Tendou Dojo, hours earlier.

"YOU LOST?!" Genma bellowed to his son, now daughter.

Apparently, the news of Ranma's rematch against Herb had became known to the Tendous, as well as Ranma's parents. What they didn't expect was the fact that Ranma had lost to Herb, thanks to outside interference from his two rivals, and ended up getting his curse locked.

Ranma was facing judgment from the senior members of the Nerima martial arts hierarchy.

"It wasn't my fault!" Ranma had objected. "I had the entire match under control until Mousse and Ryouga showed up! They distracted me long enough for Herb to splash me with the ladle, and for those two idiots to jump me from behind."

"It doesn't matter!" Genma bellowed. "A true martial artist is aware of their surroundings! You are a disgrace!"

"Like I haven't heard that before, old man," Ranma muttered. She was already formulating a plan on how to track down Herb, beat the shit out of him and get his curse unlocked.

Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen.

"Looks like the pledge to unite the schools is finished, Tendou," Genma said.

Soun Tendou nodded. "Indeed, Saotome. Ranma is of no use to us now."

"WHAT?! After all the times I've saved your hide, your family, and your home you dare call me useless!?" Ranma bellowed at the older man.

"Don't you dare talk to my father that way you pervert!" Akane shouted.

"Shut the fuck up, you tomboy," Ranma snapped, her patience wearing incredibly thin. "I wasn't talking to you."

"You are no son of mine!" Genma shouted once again. "I want you gone!"

Nodoka nodded. "I agree. As head of the Saotome clan, I hearby cast you from the clan. The Tendou-Saotome pact is hearby nullified."

Soun nodded again. "I also agree." He turned to Ranma. "Leave my home, you dishonorable ronin and never come back here again."

This wasn't looking good for Ranma. Hoping she still had some allies within the Tendous, she turned to Nabiki. "Nabiki?"

Nabiki kept her cool expression. "Sorry, Saotome. Or should I say, Ranma. You're finished. You're no good to me with your curse locked."

Ranma stepped back in shock. With all of the cash that Nabiki has made off of her, Nabiki would at least support her. That was not the case. In a final effort, Ranma turned to Kasumi. "Kasumi?!"

Kasumi shook her head. "I am sorry, Ranma-chan. But the others do have a point. You have to leave."

"You heard her, you bastard," Akane snarled. "We don't want you here anymore! I'm glad that I don't have to marry a sex-changing freak like you!"

In an instant, Genma tossed Ranma's pack at her feet. "You are no child of mine! Get out!" he shouted.

Nodoka nodded. "My son died in battle. You are nothing but a tramp sharing the same name as my dead child. You are no longer welcome here. You show your face here, you will be forced to commit seppuku."

Cologne also put her two cents in. "The Kiss of Death has been reinstated. You are no longer welcome in the village. You show your face there, you will die, Ranma."

"Get out of my house, you freak!" Akane shouted. "We don't want you here anymore!"

"I finally won, Ranma!" Ryouga shouted triumphantly. "You will pay for the hell you have put me through!"

It was at that moment that something inside Ranma had snapped. Two years of fights and the madness had finally reached a deadly breaking point.

In an instant, Ranma's aura flared outward. Instead of its usual blue color, the color of confidence, it was instead blood red.

The color of unleashed primal rage.

Genma, Nodoka, Soun and Cologne each wondered if they had pushed the cursed martial artist over the edge.

"Damn you..." she whispered. Then she set her eyes on Genma. "**DAMN YOU!**"

Then all hell broke loose.

Without uttering the words, Ranma unleashed a red-tinted Mokou Takabisha upon Genma and Nodoka. Genma managed to push his wife out of the way, but was unable to block the incoming blast. To Genma, it was as if he was struck by a freight train. Had Nodoka been struck by the ki blast, it would have killed her outright.

A swift kick to Nodoka's midsection incapacitated the Saotome matriarch. In an instant, the Saotome honor blade was in Ranma's hands, unsheathed.

Kasumi and Nabiki rushed to the side, out of harms' way as Soun, Akane, Ryouga and the three Joketsuzoku charged at Ranma.

Cologne reached Ranma first, staff poised to strike Ranma in a shiatsu pressure point. Much to her surprise, she was sent back to the Nekohanten via the Hiryushoutenha.

'Impossible!' was the thought going on in Cologne's mind as she was ejected from the Tendou home. 'She performed the move without the spiral!'

Back in the house, Ranma had reached Genma. The fat martial artist tried to run, but several slashes to his legs stopped him in his tracks.

Nodoka had recovered and had grabbed Ranma from behind. "Ranma! Stop this now!" she commanded.

Ranma's response was to snap her head back, catching Nodoka in the face, forcing her to release her now ronin-ized daughter. One backhand to the elder woman sent her to the ground. To add insult to injury, Ranma brought down the katana onto Nodoka's hair, severing the bun.

"Die, Ranma!"

"Shampoo KILL!"

Shampoo and Mousse were not an issue, since Ranma splashed them with cold water, triggering their curses, and punted them both into the direction of the Nekohanten, surprisingly Ranma's rage overriding his chronic fear of cats.

"PREPARE TO DIE, YOU HONORLESS BITCH!" Ryouga screamed, umbrella at the ready, while Akane came in at his right.

Ranma slashed at Ryouga's umbrella, cutting it in two before unleashing a barrage of vacuum blades at the lost boy, which sent him crashing into the perimeter wall.

Soun reached Ranma. With vicious force, Ranma slammed the sword handle into the Tendou patriarch's face, breaking his nose. He was knocked out with a even more vicious blow to the jaw.

"HOW DARE YOU HURT MY FATHER!" Akane shouted as she brought the mallet to bear...

...only to have Ranma neatly slice the heavy mallet head off of the handle. Gripping the katana's scabbard with her free hand, Ranma proceeded to vent out her frustrations on Akane, using the scabbard to beat her within an inch of her life. Nabiki and Kasumi watched helplessly as Ranma brutalized their younger sister without mercy, payback for all the times Akane had malleted her.

When Nabiki made a move for the phone, Ranma kicked the mallet head up and punted it towards Nabiki. She barely dodged the blow, but it destroyed the phone.

Pointing the bloody katana at the Ice Queen, Ranma said in a cold voice, "Don't move, Tendou. You and your sister watch. You move, you and your family will pay...in blood."

To show that she was serious, Ranma slapped Nabiki square across the face, sending her back to Kasumi.

With Akane down for the moment, Ranma turned her attention back to her former father. Blood was seeping from his injuries as he tried to scramble back from his former child, who was now intent on killing him and possibly everyone inside the house.

"Ranma...please..." Genma pleaded, holding up one bloodied hand in an attempt to stave off his offspring. "Show mercy...I don't wanna die!"

"You should have thought about that earlier, old man. Kacchu Tenshin Amaguriken revised...DEADLY TEMPEST!" Ranma screamed as she unleashed five hundred small vaccuum ki bolts at her former father. The attack met its mark, sending Genma to the wall and slashing at his body repeatedly.

Genma collapsed to the floor. Blood had stained his gi, turning it red. He couldn't stand, since Ranma's attack had slashed the tendons in his legs. His body felt numb and he was feeling lightheaded from the blood loss.

Ranma was prepared to liberate Genma's head from his fat body. She raised the katana over her head, preparing to deliver the coup de grace. "If I can't practice the Art...**THEN NEITHER WILL YOU! DIE, GENMA!**" Ranma declared as she brought the katana down.

"Shishi Hokoudan!"

The green ball of depressing ki had struck Ranma from behind. Distracted by Ryouga, Akane made her move. Summoning another mallet, she sent Ranma flying out of the compound and out of sight.

Once things had calmed down, ambulances were called for both Soun and Genma.

* * *

"Nodoka Saotome?"

Nodoka stood up from her seat as the surgeon approached. "Yes? How is my husband?"

"He'll live," the surgeon replied. "But there was too much damage on his spinal nerves and several of his tendons. You said that he was a martial artist?"

Nodoka nodded.

"He will be able to walk, but with a cane or a staff, but he won't be able to practice the Art again. I'm sorry."

* * *

Genma Saotome was lucky to be alive...although his survival came at a cost.

Nodoka looked at her husband. With the exception of his face, he was bandaged from head to toe, unconscious from the sedatives that was pumped into his system, otherwise, he would be in unbearable pain.

Her husband was crippled for life and she had disowned her cursed son. Honor demanded that Ranma should marry Akane, but the pact to unite the schools was no longer in effect, given the circumstances. What Nodoka did not know was that in preserving her own personal honor by abandoning Ranma, she had destroyed her family.

And that decision will come to haunt her, as well as Genma and the Tendous for the rest of their days.


	2. Chapter 1

_**Chapter One**_

Kunou Mansion – twelve hours later...

Hate. Rage. Anger.

Those were the emotions that were currently running through Ranma as she meditated inside the master bedroom inside the now-deserted Kunou Mansion. Her aura radiated around her in waves, the dark emotions washing over her in a way that would have made even Emperor Palpatine proud.

"Thought I'd find you here."

Ranma's eyes snapped open, only to find the perverted grandmaster of Anything Goes, seated before her, smoking his pipe. For once, Happousai was serious.

"Then again, it wasn't hard," Happi continued. "Your ki was a dead giveaway."

"What do you want, lech?" Ranma demanded.

"Peace, Ranma," Happi replied, trying to stave off his still-pissed heir. "I came from the hospital. I know what has happened to you. You worked Genma over pretty good with that katana."

"I was trying to kill him," Ranma deadpanned. "He got lucky."

"Indeed, but you gave him a fate worse than death," Happi pointed out. "He won't be able to practice the Art ever again. The School of Indiscriminate Grappling may be a school of questionable morals, but we also pride itself on honor. Honor that both your former parents and the Tendou clan is severely lacking. I was expecting this from Akane, but to have Nabiki and Kasumi to back up their father and your former parents..." He shook his head. "Those two idiots have abused my school for the very last time. This has turned out to be one unbelievable mess. Their views on honor is completely one-sided, from what I have witnessed. They wanted you to marry Akane – a person who hasn't been trained by Soun since his wife's passing – and to live off of your blood, sweat and tears. And the Amazons..."

"They're mine," Ranma hissed. "The Joketsuzoku...Herb and the Musk Dynasty...Genma, Nodoka...and the Tendous...they're mine, old man."

"So you **are **planning on getting even, aren't you?" Happi questioned. He almost felt sorry for those involved. Almost.

"No. I'm declaring a blood feud on all parties involved," Ranma replied. "Killing them outright is too merciful. I got something else in mind. I'll deal with the dragon bitch first and get my cure...then Cologne and her tribe will be next. The Tendous and Nodoka will be left for last." She looked at the ancient hentai with murder in their eyes. "I don't want you to interfere with my revenge."

"I have no intention of doing so," Happi replied. "In fact, you have my blessings. Regardless of you being ronin, you are still my heir."

"I won't be ronin for long," Ranma said. "I've been in contact with Grandma and Grandpa Himura for a while. Even met them a couple of weeks back without the others knowing. They will adopt me as soon as I return from China. I told them what has happened and they are not very happy with their daughter. I told them not to make a move against Nodoka until I return."

"I take it you have something planned?"

Ranma nodded.

Happi cackled. "Oh, I can't wait to see what you have planned, m'boy!" After pausing for a moment, he asked, "What about that okonomiyaki chef? Are you going after her as well?"

Ranma shook her head. "Ukyou is still in Osaka, trying to reconcile with her father. I already called her and to let her know to keep away from this place for a couple of days."

"And the Kunous? I am curious as to how you're hiding in here."

Ranma smiled evilly. "That was easy. After kicking the fat bastard's ass for trying to pimp me out to Kunou-baka and his psycho sister, I called in a favor to the local bank. They transferred the wealth of the Kunou clan into a hidden account that no one knows about, not even Nabiki. As a result, the Kunous went insane. Kodachi poisoned herself, Kunou and their father. Kodachi and her father died from the poisoning, while Kunou is in a hospice. The 'True Blunder' is now a vegetable. Everyone else thinks that they are gone on vacation."

"Smart move," Happi said. "in the meantime, I'll make myself scarce. I heard there's plenty of silky darlings waiting to be liberated in Okayama. When will you come back?"

"In a couple of weeks. I leave for China tomorrow."

* * *

Three weeks had passed since Ranma's brutal attack on her former parents and the Tendou family following her being disowned by her family and banished from the Tendou home. Genma was released from the hospital, and was allowed to return back to the Tendou home.

Genma had taken the news that he would never be able to practice martial arts incredibly hard. No one had expected Ranma to react the way that she had did. No one had expected Ranma to brutally maim Genma, as well as attacking Akane, Soun and Ryouga when they had tried to stop him.

Turns out that Ranma was more skilled with a katana than Nodoka, and it showed.

Genma considered himself lucky to be alive. Ranma had killed before in order to save his now-ex-fiancee, and she was more than willing to kill even his father. But the event had changed Genma. He knew that Ranma had surpassed him in martial arts, and despite the death threats coming from both Nodoka and Cologne should Ranma ever appear in either Nerima or near the Joketsuzoku village, Genma knew that Ranma would not back down.

However, one member of the Nerima Wrecking Crew were absent that day Ranma was disowned. The 'cute fiancee' of the Fiancee Brigade, Ukyou Kuonji, had been in Osaka, trying to mend bridges with her ailing father. When word reached Ukyou about what had happened, she was genuinely worried about Ranma, but was appalled as to how his parents and the Tendous had reacted.

When Ukyou found out that Genma was crippled, her only response was "Serves the fat panda right," and decided to stay a while longer in Kyoto with Konatsu.

Ranma had not been seen since the Incident at the Tendou hall, and everyone within the Tendou compound went on as if everything was normal. In the meantime, Nodoka, exercising her authority as clan head, had adopted Ryouga Hibiki as her son and 'convinced' Genma to make him his heir to the Saotome School of Anything Goes. Ryouga couldn't have been happier. He had helped in destroying Ranma and getting him banished from the Tendou-ke. But even more important, he was now engaged to Akane.

Unfortunately for them, Ranma still had friends and the respect of most of the people in the ward.

Unfortunately for those involved in abandoning Ranma, the Saotome and Tendou's personal hell was about to begin.

* * *

Kasumi Tendou hummed a happy tune to herself as she walked along the street, heading for her fiance's clinic. In her hands, was a plate of cookies, freshly baked.

Kasumi was engaged to Tofuu Ono, the local chiropractor in the town. It had taken a while, but Tofuu had managed to get over his 'Kasumi-itis' and proposed to Kasumi, who accepted.

Little did Kasumi know that her actions - as well as the two offending families - regarding Ranma's expulsion, had reached even Tofuu. Suffice to say, he was not very happy with how the family had taken Ranma's plight. He was more surprised as to how Kasumi had supported the family in their decision, forgetting that because of Ranma that he was able to get over his 'Kasumi-itis' and propose.

However, he had received a phone call from Ranma the previous day. Tofuu did not want to believe what Ranma had told him, but Ranma simply told him to confirm the story from Kasumi when she visited.

Tofuu was inside his office when the door opened. Moments later, Kasumi entered the office, oblivious to the oncoming maelstrom that she was about to step into.

"Good morning, Tofuu-kun," she greeted. "I made some cookies for you." It was at that moment that Kasumi noticed the look on his face. "Tofuu-kun, what's wrong?"

Tofuu's face was serious. "We need to talk, Kasumi," he said.

Kasumi set the plate of cookies on the counter and took a seat. "Of course. What is it?"

Tofuu folded his arms across his chest. "What happened three weeks ago?" he demanded. "What did your family and the Saotomes did to Ranma?"

"Herb, the Dragon Prince of the Musk had locked in his curse. Father and Uncle Saotome have both dissolved the engagement between her and Akane. Uncle and Auntie Saotome have disowned him and named Ryouga their new son, and banished Ranma on threat of committing seppuku should she ever show her face in Nerima again. Then Ranma attacked Genma and crippled him for life and assaulted Auntie Saotome, my father and my other sisters before Akane malleted him out of the house." Kasumi replied as if she was discussing the weather.

Tofuu rubbed the bridge of his nose. "So the rumors were true...Ranma has been disowned."

"It was for the best," Kasumi said. "Ranma is useless if he can't be a male."

Tofuu looked at Kasumi as if she had grown a second head. His fiancee, sweet, wonderful Kasumi, was **actually** supporting this decision that could have very much destroyed Ranma's life? This he expected from the parents and even Akane, but KASUMI?

Tofuu groaned as he felt a headache coming on.

"What's wrong?" Kasumi asked.

"You are what's wrong," Tofuu replied flatly.

Kasumi took a step back from her fiance. She had never seen him act like this before. "What do you mean?"

"'What do I mean?'" Tofuu repeated. "Let me tell you what I mean. Ranma looked up to you as an elder sister. He **supported** me in my pursuit of your affections."

"I don't see why this has anything to do with us. Ranma is an honor-less man...well, make that a woman."

Tofuu bristled at that. In the back of his mind, he wondered how he had fallen in love with someone as callous as Kasumi. But, as the events from two days prior has shown, her housewife exterior was nothing more than a mask. She was clearly a faker as was the rest of her family.

"No," Tofuu countered, getting more and more upset by the minute. "In any case, Ranma has more honor than you, your family and his parents combined. How many times has he defended your family from getting hurt in his fights? How many times has he upheld the honor of your father's dojo? And how many times has he saved Akane from danger. More times than anyone can count. I heard that he even took on a Godling and survived! So what if he has a curse! You of all people should have supported him! Nabiki should have supported him, with all of the money she had made off of him! When he lost his purpose, all of you just stab him in the back and cast him aside like a piece of garbage!"

"I will not have you talking about my family like that, Tofuu," Kasumi replied coldly. "Ranma has no honor. All that he has done for my family...that was in the past. What happened two days ago...that was to preserve my family's honor."

Tofuu scoffed. "'Honor,'" he sneered. "Everything about your family is about honor. What about doing what you know is right? What you and your family have done to him was basically strip everything away from Ranma." He sighed as he slumped back into his seat. "Since you care so much about honor, I know what I must do."

Kasumi did not like where this was going.

"I spoke with my mother earlier today and she agrees with me," Tofuu continued as he rose to his feet. "Since honor means so much to you, I, too will preserve my own honor...by officially terminating our engagement. I will not be engaged to someone who is as honor-less and two-faced like you."

Kasumi was taken aback by Tofuu's cruel words and his cold gaze. "Wh-what?" she stammered. "Tofuu...you can't be serious. I thought you loved me. Please...please don't do this to me..." she pleaded, on her knees. "Tofuu, think of my family...I'll do anything for you. Please don't leave me."

Tofuu looked down on the sobbing woman in disgust. "I once loved you, Kasumi. But your actions have changed all of that. Had you defended Ranma in his time of distress then we would not have been having this conversation. I don't want you here anymore. I don't want you. We are finished, Kasumi Tendou."

"Tofuu..." Kasumi sobbed. "Tofuu..."

The young chiropractor was unmoved by the sobbing woman. "You and your family are no longer welcome in my clinic. Oh, and tell Mr. Saotome that his services are no longer necessary. I will find another assistant. I have no use for a cripple," he said in a mocking tone. "He and his wife are no longer welcome here as well, unless they want to experience some painful pressure points that I picked up over the years." He pointed to the door. "Get out."

"Tofuu, please..."

"Get. Out. NOW."

Kasumi shrank back from Tofuu's red aura. She turned on her heels and ran out of the clinic, crying. Once she was gone, Tofuu picked up the plate of cookies and tossed them in the trash.

Taking a seat back behind his desk, he removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. This was going to be a long day indeed for Tofuu Ono. If he knew the Tendous, then either Nabiki or Soun would be at his doorstep by the end of the day. Soun was easy to deal with, but Nabiki was the real threat. Tofuu knew that she would be more than willing to make anyone who offended either herself or her family suffer.

Tofuu swore that he would not become another tally mark for the Ice Queen. It was time to knock down the mercenary Tendou a couple of notches.

He reached for his phone and dialed in a number.

* * *

At the same time, at Fuurinkan...

Akane noticed that something was amiss upon arriving at the school with Ryouga. The Hentai Horde was there, but made no move to attack. Instead, they were all looking at the offending pair as if they were nothing but garbage. In fact, the majority of the students and even the faculty looked at her and Ryouga with nothing but utter contempt on their faces.

Akane shook it off as the weirdness of the ward and entered inside.

Too bad it had gotten worse when she had arrived at her classroom. Her friends Yuka and Sayuri acted as if she had never existed. Ryouga had gotten himself lost in the meantime, leaving Akane alone. Miss Hinako was conducting roll call. Akane noticed that she had skipped her name. "Excuse me, Miss Hinako?" Akane interrupted, "you forgot to call my name."

The resident school disciplinarian/ki-vampire ignored her and continued on with roll call. Even Sayuri and Yuka, her friends since childhood, ignored her and carried on their conversation as if she was not there.

It was as if she was a ghost.

By the time lunch came around, she was summoned to the principal's office. Wondering what the hell was going on, Akane answered the summon.

The youngest of the Tendou girls stood before the door that had the words **Riona Hiroyuki, Principal**. Below that was a custom-made sign which had said, clearly to intimidate any offending student sent her way: **Abandon all hope, ye who enter here**.

Akane opened the door. Seated behind her desk, looking rather intimidating, was Principal Riona Hiroyuki. Following the disappearance of the insane Principal Kunou and his two children months earlier, Sayuri had been promoted to the highest office of Fuurinkan.

"Sit down," Hiroyuki ordered, pointing to the chair in front of her desk.

"Principal Hiroyuki, what's going on?" Akane demanded as she sat down. "Why is everyone giving me the cold shoulder?"

"Simple, Miss Tendou," Hiroyuki replied coolly. "They know about Ranma. They know about your family's crimes against him. And I can't guarantee your safety against the Hentai Horde, should they decide to attack you once again."

Akane snorted. "I can handle them," she said. "Those perverts aren't even a threat. Why are you defending that honor-less bastard anyway?"

"Because that 'honor-less bastard,' as you call him, saved my family's life, which is why I tend to look the other way regarding his fights on campus," Hiroyuki replied. "Be that as it may, Miss 'I'm-a-martial-artist-too,' If the Hentai Horde decide to pull the kiddie gloves off, you could be in serious danger...or worse...eventhough you deserve what's coming to you. For that, you are no longer a student here in Fuurinkan. Your school records have been mailed to your father and as of this moment, you are trespassing on school property. You are no longer welcome here."

"WHAT?!" Akane screeched. "You can't just throw me out!"

Hiroyuki's eyes flashed dangerously. "Really?"

* * *

The school gate slammed shut behind Akane following Hiroyuki punting her out of the school grounds. Akane had landed in a mud puddle, given the fact that it had rained earlier, drenching her from head to toe.

The gate slammed closed in her face as Principal Hiroyuki turned and walked back into the school. Furthermore, several hakama-clad members from the school's kendo squad – each armed with steel katanas – stood guard at the gate.

Akane considered the idea of fighting the three kendoists, but remembered that following Kunou's disappearance, the new kendo club's captain was a more competent and a more skilled fighter than the 'True Blunder.' Akane had even fought against him once and lost very badly, in a matter of fact.

Defeated, Akane turned around and trudged home. As she rounded the corner from the school, the rain had started up again, drenching her completely. Back inside the school, the students and faculty cheered.

* * *

Nerima City Hall.

Soun had received a phone call from Toshikaki, one of the senior members of the Nerima Council, in regards to an emergency session of the council.

Thinking that he was finally being taken seriously for once, Soun left the Tendou-ke and arrived at City Hall. Little did he know was that **he **was the subject of the emergency meeting.

"Why is Yamada in my seat?" Soun demanded as he entered the meeting room. The council had nine members, with Toshikaki Hazuki as the senior member of the council, and the one with the most pull and influence. He was also one of the few people that Nabiki had nothing on for blackmailing.

"I haven't been entirely honest with you, Soun," Toshikaki replied. "This meeting is in regards as to your spot on the council. We have taken a vote and decided that you have acted dishonorably and are no longer worthy to sit in the Nerima council. As of this moment, Yamada will take your place until a special election is held for a more respectable replacement."

"What?!" Soun barked. "You dare lecture me about honor?!"

"Given what your family has done to Ranma," Toshikaki replied curtly, enjoying the surprised look on Soun's face, "I do dare lecture you about honor. You and your family is banned from this council as long as they live in Nerima. Furthermore, there is the matter of the massive bar tab that you and your friend had ran up in Ranma's name with the bars all over Nerima. Since he is no longer a Saotome, the bill defaults back onto you."

Soun paled. This was not looking good.

* * *

Nabiki returned home later that night from her classes at Tokyo University to find the house in an uproar.

Nodoka was in the living room with Kasumi, the matronly woman trying to console the eldest Tendou daughter, who continued to sob uncontrollably in the older woman's embrace. Akane was fuming and Ryouga was trying to calm his fiancee down and failing.

"What's going on?" Nabiki asked. The last time she had seen Kasumi so distraught was when their mother had died. "Oneechan, what's wrong?"

Through sobs, Kasumi managed to get out, "Tofuu...he **dumped** me!"

As Kasumi resumed her bawling, Nodoka explained everything. "Tofuu had found out about what we had done to the disowned. In retaliation, he terminated the engagement between himself and your elder sister." She gestured to Akane and Soun. "Akane was thrown out of Fuurinkan and your father was ejected from the council. All of Nerima has found out about what has happened here."

"How dare he do that to my little girl!" Soun bellowed. "Why was my little girl treated this way? Why, oh why was she deserving of such an ungrateful fiance?"

Nabiki slowly digested the information. Tofuu had dumped Kasumi. He terminated the engagement because he had found out what the Saotomes and her family had done to Ranma. Her sister was booted out of Fuurinkan and her father lost his seat on the city council.

The room's temperature fell several degrees as Nabiki turned towards the door. Soun noticed his daughter heading towards the door. "Nabiki, where are you going?" he asked.

"Going to have a chat with the good doctor," Nabiki replied coldly.

"I'm coming too!" Akane shouted as she stood up.

Nabiki turned her glare on Akane, stopping her little sister in her tracks. "No. You stay here. Tofuu is mine."

Seeing as how Nabiki would brook no argument, Akane nodded and returned to the living room. Nabiki then took her leave from the Tendou-ke. 'So Tofuu was responsible for hurting my sister,' Nabiki thought darkly. 'No one crosses my family...**especially **Kasumi. Tofuu Ono, by the time I am finished with you, I will make your life a living hell unless you take my sister back!'

* * *

The clinic was closed, but that didn't stop the middle Tendou sister from entering. The door was unlocked, as if he was expecting someone.

Tofuu wasn't that hard to find. He was in his office, behind his desk, looking over a medical chart. He didn't even bother to look up as Nabiki entered the room.

"Something I can help you with, Tendou?" he asked as he continued to scan the chart.

Nabiki was straight to the point. "Why did you break off the engagement?"

Tofuu countered with another question as he placed the medical chart on the desk. "Why did either you or your sisters stopped your parents or the Saotomes from disowning Ranma?" he replied coldly.

"That was a family matter," Nabiki replied cooly.

Tofuu placed the chart on the desk. "I am very disappointed in, Nabiki. With all of the schemes you placed Ranma in, including your role in the failed wedding months back, I was sure **you** would have said something to stop this injustice from happening. You always talked about people repaying their debts to you, but it appears that it was the other way around. Ranma **had** paid his debts to you, and your family."

Nabiki met the doctor's cold glare with her own. "I'll admit that I made plenty of cash off of Saotome...I mean, Ranma. But all good things must come to an end. He has outlived his usefulness to me, and to my family once his curse was locked."

Tofuu glared at the younger woman. "Ranma may have been rough, but given all the times he rescued your sister and defended your family's dojo...what's going to happen the next time Akane get kidnapped? Who's going to save her then? Who is going to defend your family dojo now that he is gone? That Hibiki boy? Please. He got lost in my own closet. He wouldn't be able to rescue your sister even if the bad guys had given him a compass, GPS, and a road map. I thought that given the times that Ranma had saved your family, you would have the decency to stand up for him."

"You are in no position to tell me what my family and myself can do, Tofuu," Nabiki countered.

"That's Doctor Ono to you, Miss Tendou," Tofuu shot back.

"Whatever. You crossed the line when you messed with my family. I am within my rights to make your life a living hell," Nabiki countered. "But...if you take Kasumi back as your fiancee, then my family and I will forget this little confrontation. If not, then-"

"'Then' what? You can't intimidate me, Nabiki," Tofuu said. "You are fighting a battle you can't win. I am not one of your stoolies or your marks who you can threaten."

"You crossed my family, Tofuu. Refuse and you will pay dearly. You will lose your medical license, no one will deal with you...unless you take Kasumi back and forget about that honorless freak."

"Since when did you care so much about honor?" Tofuu snapped. "All you cared about was making a fast yen, not giving a damn about got caught in the crossfire."

"I don't have time for this little debate, Ono," Nabiki snapped back. "Will you take Kasumi back or not?"

Tofuu leaned back in his seat. "No."

"You will regret this Ono," Nabiki said in a cold voice as she leveled her gaze on the older man, who showed no fear. "By the end of the week, I will destroy you. I will personally make your life a living hell."

"You will not," a second female voice said from the open doorway.

Tofuu rose to his feet as Nabiki turned around. Standing in the open doorway, was a woman. From the look of things, she was about Nodoka's age. Short dark hair framing her face, smartly dressed in a business suit. Her posture radiated authority. Behind her, were two men, walking masses of muscle, dressed in dark suits. Eventhough the woman was very attractive, her ice-cold expression made Nabiki's own Ice Queen persona look like an amateur in comparison.

"Obaasan." Tofuu bowed.

The woman responded with a nod. "Dear nephew. Apologies for my time," she said. "I got here as soon as I could from my meeting." She turned to Nabiki, sizing the younger woman up. "It appears I have arrived just in time. So you must be Nabiki Tendou, the so-called 'Ice Queen of Nerima.'" She scoffed. "I've seen better."

Nabiki bristled at that insult. "You have no idea who I am, do you?"

"Funny. I was going to say the same about myself," the woman replied. In the same cold tone. "Allow me to introduce myself. Ruriko Tsubaki, Chairwoman of the Tsubaki Society."

Nabiki immediately recognized the name. 'Tsubaki...no way...! Tofuu has ties with the Yakuza!' she thought as she visibly paled.

"Ah, I see you're not as dense as you look," Ruriko said as she savored the look on the middle Tendou. "My husband is the oyabun of the Society, while I am his second-in-command. With the exception of drugs, guns, and murder, my group is involved in every aspect of organized crime." She gestured to Tofuu. "My sister-in-law nor my brother didn't want Tofuu-chan to follow our family's path, so Tofuu decided to become a doctor," Ruriko explained. "Tofuu has no ties with the group whatsoever, although he occasionally performs physicals on my family and some of our men. Neither does Ranma, and I owe him for saving my daughter's life."

"It's true," Tofuu said. "Several months earlier, Ranma saved the life of my cousin by pulling her out of the path of an incoming car. When Aunt Ruriko called me and told me what had happened and gave me a description of the person who saved Kumi-chan, I told her that it was Ranma who had saved her life."

"Imagine my surprise when I find out that he was friends with Tofuu-chan," Ruriko continued. "My husband and I even offered Ranma a place within the group, a chance to become a made man. But he refused. Honorable to a fault, the boy is. That was one of the reasons that Ryuji-kun and I respected about him, despite the curse. Ranma, however, did agree to the fact that Ryuji and I owe him a favor. Now, I am paying back what I owe to Ranma."

Ruriko took a step forward, while Nabiki took a step back. It was clear that she was way in over her head, if the Yakuza was at her throat. Soon, her back was up against the wall.

"I know about your little network of spies and informants you have running around Nerima and Toudai," Ruriko continued. "They pale in comparison as to what I have at my disposal. I also know about your betting pools, as well as your extortion and blackmail schemes. You'd be surprised as to what people can tell you when you offer them enough money...or if you threaten to break their legs."

The gangster's eyes took on a steel hardness that not even Nabiki's glare could break as she lowered her voice down to a whisper. "I will only say this once, Nabiki, so please pay attention. For threatening to destroy my nephew's – my** favorite** nephew's –good reputation, I could, as you like to say to your own victims, 'make your life a living hell.' And I will not stop there. As the heavens above as my witness, I will destroy you, Nabiki Tendou, totally and completely. Your little scholarship to Tokyo University will be revoked...you will be blacklisted, unable to attend university in the country...your little operations will be seized and placed under my control...and your family will also feel my wrath.

"Your father, Soun Tendou, will suffer, as will your sisters, Kasumi and Akane, as well as Genma and Nodoka Saotome. I will make you beg for death, but I will not deliver." A sinister grin spread across the older woman's face. "I think your sisters, as well as yourself, would make a nice addition to the Society's brothels in Kabukicho, especially your elder sister. She is very beautiful, I must admit, and **will **make a lot of money by spreading her legs, as will Nodoka. I know some men who like older women. And given your father and Saotome's gambling habits, not to mention that several of the bars he visited are under the Society's control, I could call in his debts and have your family home seized and the lot of you thrown out to the streets without a yen to your name."

"She's telling the truth, Nabiki," Tofuu added from his desk. "Ruriko-obaasan is not as forgiving as I am. She can be very...creative in meting out punishments. I think you should listen to what she is saying to you."

"All I am asking, no make that **demanding, **that you leave Tofuu alone," Ruriko finished. "You play nice with me, Tendou, and I will do the same. For your family's sake, don't fuck with me, or cross my nephew. Know your place, little girl, and we'll get along just fine. Are we clear?"

Nabiki swallowed as she slowly nodded, accepting defeat. She may have been a mercenary, but even she knew that if the Yakuza had caught wind of her rackets, then she would be forced out of her own operation. Even worse, her family would be placed in danger.

Ruriko turned to Tofuu, a smug grin on her face. "You see, nephew? Even the proud can be humbled." Turning back to Nabiki, Ruriko added, "I will be watching closely, Tendou. I also have my own personal network of spies and informants in Nerima. Oh, and I suggest that you don't mention what has happened here to your family or anyone else, if you want to keep walking under your own power. For your sake, Nabiki Tendou, I hope we never meet again. Now leave my sight."

The two guards parted, allowing Nabiki to run out of the clinic in a fright.

* * *

Nabiki returned home in defeat. She had clearly underestimated Dr. Tofuu, and it showed. Nabiki did not like to lose, but there was nothing that she could do. If she had made her move against Tofuu, then word would reach back to his aunt and uncle, and all hell would break loose.

Ruriko's threat of turning her sisters – as well as herself – out made her sick to her stomach. And the idea of losing her home was unbearable.

Nabiki entered the family room. Kasumi had calmed down somewhat, but was still being held in Nodoka's arms. The sound of bricks breaking told Nabiki where her younger sister was at the moment. Ryouga was also absent, meaning that either he got lost again or he was in the dojo with Akane.

The two fathers were also in the room, playing Go and cheating at every opportunity.

Kasumi noticed Nabiki enter the room. "Well...what did he say?" she asked hopefully. "Will he take me back?"

Nabiki sighed. This was the hardest thing she ever had to do. "I'm sorry, sis. He won't take you back."

That caught the attention of the two fathers. "WHAT?" Soun bellowed as Kasumi once again broke down. "HOW DARE HE HURT MY LITTLE GIRL!"

"That ungrateful man!" Nodoka admonished. "We only did what honor demanded us to do! Kasumi had nothing to do with this!"

"He made it very clear that he wants nothing to do with either Kasumi or the rest of us," Nabiki continued, ignoring the outbursts. "In fact, he has outright banned all of us from ever coming to his clinic." Nabiki remembered Ruriko's threat against her family should they ever confront Tofuu. "We have no other choice but to let Tofuu be."

With that said, Nabiki left for her room. Once she was alone in her room, she sat at her desk and sighed. First Kasumi gets dumped by Tofuu. Then Akane is thrown out of Fuurinkan and her friends turn their backs on her. Her father loses his seat on the council. Nearly all of Nerima had turned against the Saotomes and her family. And the worst part of it was that Nabiki could not do anything to stop this from happening.

'Things cannot get anymore worse than they already are,' the mercenary Tendou thought.

In the coming weeks, she would be proved wrong.


	3. Chapter 2

_**Chapter Two**_

Snafu's Notes: Special thanks to everyone who reviewed and placed this story as their favorite. As to the reason why the story is updated so quickly is that the first couple of chapters were already written out.

I've been working on this fanfic on-and-off for about a year and a half, being inspired by such Ranma fanfics like 'When No One Else Would,' 'Betrayal's Reward,' and 'Legend of the Crimson Bridge,' I wanted to do a fanfic in which Ranma swears revenge on those who betrayed him. And from the look of the reviews, you love the story.

And now, the story continues...

Nodoka Saotome was the next person to feel the fallout from Ranma's banishment.

Three days had passed since Tofuu had broken off the engagement to Kasumi Tendou. Kasumi had remained in her room, leaving Nodoka and Nabiki to fix breakfast. Akane was finishing up her bath and the fathers were setting up the shogi table when there was a loud banging at the door.

Soun decided to answer the door. Standing out in the street, was an elderly couple, both dressed in traditional Japanese attire. Soun warily eyed the sheathed sword that the man had in his hand. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"Where's Nodoka Saotome?" the woman demanded.

"She's inside," Soun replied. "We're having breakfast, so – hey!"

The woman didn't give Soun a chance to finish as she shoved him to the side and stepped inside, followed by her husband.

"This is my home!" Soun shouted. "You can't just come barging in here like this!"

The elderly couple ignored the Tendou patriarch as they strode into the dining room, where the two families – Kasumi included – were seated and having breakfast.

"Nodoka."

Nodoka looked up and found herself face-to-face with her mother, the matriarch of the Himura clan, Chiyaki Himura. Standing behind her was her husband and Nodoka's father, Shinji Himura.

And both persons did not look very happy with Nodoka at the moment. Genma paled at the sight of Shinji's sword. After all, he had taught Nodoka the family style. They were also against Nodoka marrying Genma, but did not disown her.

Until the news of their roles in Ranma's banishment reached the Himuras. And they were pissed.

Nodoka rose from her seat. "Mother. Father. What are you doing here?"

"I would like to speak with my daughter alone," Chiyaki said in a tone that showed she was not in the mood to argue as she ignored her daughter's question.

"Excuse me," Nabiki butted in, "but you can't come charging in here like you own the place –"

Chiyaki turned to Nabiki with a stone-cold stare that made even the Ice Queen flinch. "I wasn't talking to you, little girl. Everyone but my baka daughter out** now**."

"We can talk in the kitchen," Nodoka replied.

Chiyaki stepped to the side, allowing Nodoka to lead her to the kitchen. When the Tendous, Ryouga, and Genma tried to follow, Shinji stopped them.

"This is a family matter. Stay out of this," he ordered coldly.

When it looked like that Akane and Ryouga wasn't going to listen, Shinji drew out his sword, which had the desired effect of stopping both teenagers in their tracks. As Genma knew, Shinji's sword was the Himura Honor Blade – a Muramasa. Shinji drew a line across the wooden floor as he guarded the kitchen's entrance.

"Cross this line, and you lose your head," he warned.

Akane stepped forward. "This is my family's home! You have no right to –" She was cut off as Soun yanked her back as Shinji made an attempt to decapitate Akane.

"Do as he says," Genma concurred. "He is very deadly with that sword of his."

Inside the kitchen, Nodoka faced her mother. "Mother, what is the meaning of this –"

**SMACK!**

Nodoka was cut off as her mother's hand impacted hard across her face, sending Nodoka to the floor. Even for an old woman, Chiyaki was still strong. Outside the kitchen, the slap was heard, but could not do anything, since Shinji and his drawn Muramasa kept them at bay.

Chiyaki wasn't finished with her daughter. Grabbing a handful of Nodoka's kimono, she pulled her daughter close, so that her face was mere inches away from her own.

"Give me one good reason why I should not kill you for what you have done to my grandchild," Chiyaki hissed. "One reason, Nodoka!"

Nodoka's eyes went wide. Not because of fear, but of the revelation that Ranma had been in contact with her parents.

"I...I only did what honor demanded," Nodoka whimpered, blood trickling from her busted lip. "Ranma is of no use to the family if he is a girl for the rest of his life. I did what was only necessary, Mother –"

That earned Nodoka another slap to the face by her mother. "**YOU THINK THAT HONOR GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO ABANDON YOUR ONLY SON?!**" Chiyaki screamed into her daughter's face, a vein clearly pulsing in her head as she viciously slapped and punched Nodoka again and again. "**YOU THINK YOU CAN USE HONOR AS AN EXCUSE FOR YOUR OWN WEAKNESS?! YOU THINK YOU CAN USE HONOR AS AN EXCUSE FOR GENMA'S FOOLISHNESS?! YOU ABANDONED YOUR SON! MY GRANDSON! YOU BETRAYED YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY!!!**"

"Chi-chan, remember your blood pressure," Shinji reminded her from the open doorway, not taking his eyes from Genma and the other Tendous. "Remember why we're here."

Chiyaki took several moments to take several breaths, but the anger was still evident. It was at that moment that Chiyaki noticed the battered Nodoka's sheathed katana resting on the counter. In an instant, the katana was in Chiyaki's hands, unsheathed, the business end a perfect inch from the petrified woman's throat.

"Ranma has told us everything," Chiyaki continued, "about the training trip, the multiple engagements, the Cat-fu training that baka of a husband has put him through, and Jusenkyou. You should have done the right thing and saw to your son's happiness. Instead, you did the opposite. You are no daughter of mine, Nodoka Saotome. As far as my husband and I are concerned, we have no daughter. As of this moment, we cast you out from the Tokyo House of the Himura clan, you dishonorable ronin, and place Ranma Saotome – no, make that Ranma Himura – as our heir."

Chiyaki then gripped the blade of the katana with her other hand.

Nodoka realized what she was planning to do. "MOTHER, NO! PLEASE!" she screamed.

Too late. Nodoka was sent into hysterics once her mother had snapped the blade in two and dropped the pieces to the floor. Nodoka scrambled over to her destroyed katana, cradling the pieces with her hands, sobbing uncontrollably.

"I won't make you commit seppuku," Chiyaki snarled. "Death is too good for you. You can live with the shame and dishonor you have brought upon yourself."

She spat on the crying woman before turning on her heel and walking out of the kitchen. Shinji sheathed his sword and followed after his wife, departing from the Tendou home without a single word, leaving the Tendous in a state of shock as they tried to comfort Nodoka.

* * *

"I'm sorry, mommy...I'm sorry, mommy...I'm sorry, mommy..."

Genma slowly slid the shoji door closed after checking in on his wife. A week had passed since the Himuras had disowned Nodoka, leaving her to wallow in her own misery, unable to commit seppuku. Since then, Nodoka had been confined to the guest bedroom.

Nodoka looked like she had stared down into the depths of the nine hells. Her hair was undone, the kimono dirty, her hands bandaged from where the broken pieces of the blade had cut her, her eyes haunted by the events that had taken place with her parents as she hugged her knees, rocking back and forth, chanting the same line over and over again. Having been brutally stripped of her sword, her honor and her family had driven Nodoka to the brink of madness.

Leaning on his walking stick, Genma limped down the stairs and onto the engawa. Soun had the Go board ready for their usual game. Kasumi was serving lunch to her sisters and Ryouga. "How is Nodoka, Saotome?" the Tendou patriarch asked.

"Not good," Genma grunted as he sat down. "She's been repeating the same sentence over and over again for the past several days." He sighed. "If she doesn't get better soon, then I will have no other choice but to have her committed."

While Genma and Soun talked, there was a knock at the door. Kasumi rose from her place at the table and answered it. Kasumi saw that it was a deliveryman, holding a wrapped package in one hand, his eyes shaded by his deliveryman's cap.

"Welcome to the Tendou Dojo," she greeted, although the cheerfulness was forced. She was still hurting over her breakup with Tofuu and it showed.

"Got a package for Soun Tendou and Genma Saotome," the deliveryman said in a gruff tone.

"Soun Tendou is my father," Kasumi replied. "I'll give it to him."

The deliveryman handed over the package and left. Kasumi closed the door and walked back into the living room. "Father, Uncle Saotome, this came in the mail for the both of you," she said as she handed the package to Soun.

Soun looked at the return address. "Hmm...It's from China." He unwrapped the packing packing paper and opened the box. Inside was a videotape with the words **WATCH ME** written in Japanese.

The last item was a photograph. As Soun picked it up, he recognized it immediately.

It was the photo taken at the beach, with the entire Nerima Wrecking Crew.

Only this time, six red X's covered the faces of Genma and Nodoka Saotome, Kasumi Tendou, and the three Chinese Amazons, Cologne, Shampoo and Mousse. The faces of the three Kunous were scribbled out and under Ukyou the word **SPARED **was written.

Genma looked at the photo. Then he turned the photo around. On the back was a brief note, addressed to the Tendous and Saotomes.

_**The feud is on. Ranma.**_

Genma frowned. "It's from the boy," he concluded.

Soun nodded. "The dishonored one still lives. I'm amazed that he is still alive." He looked at the tape in his hands. "He could not have killed the three Amazons by himself."

He stood up and walked over to the VCR. He stuck the tape inside and pressed play. In the meantime, Ryouga and the Tendou sisters found a seat in the living room and watched the tape.

It was a recording, dated three days earlier. Almost immediately, Akane, and the two older men recognized the Joketsuzoku village, at night.

It would had been a perfect setting, if it not was for the fact that there was a battle taking place. Most of the village was on fire and bodies of both Chinese Amazon and Musk tribesmen littered the ground.

The Musk had invaded the Chinese Amazons.

As the tape continued, the gathered crowd recognized Shampoo by her long lavender hair and her bonborris. After several minutes of fighting, Shampoo had lost her weapons and resorted to using a Chinese broadsword as a weapon.

A large Musk warrior was soon fighting Shampoo. Mousse had tried to intervene on Shampoo's behalf, but was brutally knocked aside. As the fight raged on, the giant Musk had disarmed Shampoo, and moved in for the kill. One clawed hand wrapped around Shampoo's throat in a death grip.

Then, as the Tendous, Ryouga, and Genma watched in complete horror, the Musk ripped out her windpipe. Blood gushing from her wound, Shampoo collapsed to the ground, her body twitching, one leg jerking violently before lying still.

As Akane rushed off to the bathroom, Cologne and a number of armed elders, killed the murderous Musk warrior. As the Musk was finally beaten back, Cologne was wailing over the body of her heir. The Joketsuzoku were successful in beating back the Musk invaders, but the price they had paid had been very high. A Pyhrric victory indeed.

Then the picture went black for three seconds, before it came back. As before, it was that of the Joketsuzoku village, only this time, it was day. The village was in ruins following the devastating assault from the Musk forces the night before.

And things were about to get worse.

The Amazons were making their last stand. Not from the Musk Dynasty, but from heavily-armed soldiers in combat gear. The Amazons were being invaded again, this time by the People's Liberation Army.

As the horrifying battle unfolded, the Chinese Amazons were no match for the automatic weapons from the Chinese military. But they fought on. Cologne fought with reckless abandon, taking down numerous soldiers. Having lost her great-granddaughter and heir, Cologne had nothing else to live for.

One of the soldiers was armed with a rocket-propelled grenade. Cologne spun around and faced the soldier, just as she fired. In her rage, Cologne tried the Breaking Point on the incoming RPG.

That would be the last mistake she would ever make.

This time, it was Kasumi and Nabiki who were off to the bathroom as the RPG exploded, eliminating the Joketsuzoku matriarch once and for all in a explosion of blood and gore.

With Cologne's death, the Amazons were routed and quickly surrendered. The video then ended with the village being razed to the ground. The Chinese military proved to be very thorough. The Chinese Amazons had all but ceased to exist.

Then the screen went blank.

Soun and Genma both exchanged concerned glares, while the former's daughters, who had returned, was white as a sheet as they took in this new information.

The Joketsuzoku was wiped out.

Cologne and Shampoo were both killed in brutal fashion.

Then the phone rang, causing everyone to jump. Kasumi, being the closest to the phone, walked over and answered it. "Moshi-moshi, Tendou Training Hall."

Kasumi went deathly pale as she recognized the female voice on the other end.

"Aw...Kasumi-oneechan felt sick to her stomach? I can tell you finished watching the tape. How do you like my work?"

"R-R-Ranma..." she breathed out.

That name caught everyone's attention.

"So how are things with the good doctor?" Ranma casually asked. "Oh, that's right. He **dumped **you for being such a two-faced hypocrite. And your baka father and that kawaiikune bitch of a sister both got tossed out of the council and school. And the meeting between Nodoka and my grandparents didn't go so well for her, didn't it?"

Nabiki, in the meantime, had pressed the speakerphone button on the phone, allowing everyone to hear Ranma's voice, which was soft, but dripping with a combination of malice and promised sadism.

"I know everyone is listening now, so I'll be brief. You brought this blood feud on your heads when you betrayed and stabbed me in the back. I could kill all of you outright and the police would not bat an eye. But death is too good for most of you. I'm going to instead take what each of you cherish the most. In the end all of you will beg for me to kill you, and I will not deliver."

"You come near my family, Ranma and I will make your life a living hell," Nabiki threatened. "I got informants and connections all over Tokyo. I will have the police on your head if you make a move against my family."

Ranma laughed at Nabiki. A laugh that was devoid of any emotion that sent chills down the fathers' spines, as did Kasumi and Akane. "In case you hadn't already noticed, you mercenary bitch, I already did. Good luck in trying to find me."

Click. The line went dead.

Nabiki fumed. "That bastard doesn't know who he is dealing with," she seethed.

"No. **You **don't know who you're dealing with, Nabiki."

Nabiki turned to Genma, as did the rest of the Tendous. "What do you mean, Uncle Saotome?"

Genma leaned onto his staff. "You think you knew Ranma? Well you didn't. None of you did. Not even Nodoka or even myself. I raised him for over ten years, trained him to become the best. The only think that kept him from going over the edge was his honor."

Soun immediately understood what Genma was saying. "And since his honor is gone, there is nothing that can stop him from killing all of us if he wants to. He wants all of us to suffer."

Genma nodded. "In the two years he has been here, he knows all of our strengths and weaknesses. He knows how we work." He turned to Akane. "He could have stopped you from using that mallet on him. But his honor kept him in check. Now, I fear he will destroy us all."

"You sound like you're scared of him," Nabiki noted.

In an instant, Genma was on the middle Tendou, his outburst shocking even Nabiki. "**HE ALMOST KILLED ME! AND IF HE HAD THE CHANCE, HE WOULD HAVE KILLED AKANE AND YOUR FATHER!**"

Genma slumped back into his seat. "Ranma is a master tactician. He would have beaten Herb a second time if no one hadn't interfered," he added, shooting Ryouga a nasty glare, causing he eternal lost boy to cough nervously. "That macho jock routine was just an act to let your guards down. And we all fell for it. He knows our secrets and since he is no longer bound by honor, he will use them to destroy us."

No one noticed Ryouga trembling slightly. The Jusenkyou curse wasn't the least of his worries. He had an even darker secret, one that was potentially lethal, should Ranma decide to expose it. But he could not tell Akane or her family, because if he did, he would be ran out of Nerima.

Or worse.

Kasumi excused herself in order to pick up some supplies for dinner. Since she was no longer welcome in the Nerima marketplace, as was the Saotomes and the rest of her family, she was forced to go to Juuban for supplies.

As Kasumi opened the front gate, she screamed as someone collapsed on top of her. Within moments, Soun and the others were at the front gates.

On top of Kasumi, was Mousse.

A battered, beaten and bloodied Mousse.

"Help..." Mousse croaked. "Help me...help me..."

* * *

Mousse was taken to Nerima General Hospital. Upon arrival, he was rushed to the emergency room, and into surgery. Hours later, the chief surgeon – the same one who had operated on Genma weeks earlier – gave the Tendous and Genma some bad news.

Mousse was hurt pretty badly. He had lost a lot of blood and was bleeding internally. His left eye was bandaged and most of his body was covered in bandages, blood seeping from several of them. His chances for survival were slim and none.

Soun and Genma entered the room.

"It's quiet now," Mousse said softly. "So very quiet. I can still hear the screams...feel the intense heat of the flames. I couldn't protect Shampoo. I watched...I watched as that Musk bastard killed her in front of me." He began to sob softly. "My Shampoo..my home...gone..."

Before Soun could question the injured Chinese Amazon, one of his doctors stuck his head inside the room. "He needs his rest. You can visit him tomorrow."

Seeing as how they wasn't going to get any answers from Mousse, Soun and Genma left the room.

* * *

Midnight. Mousse's EKG beeped softly as the injured Chinese Amazon rested in his bed, his arms restrained following his suicide attempt shortly after Soun and Genma had left the hospital.

The door to his room opened and in stepped a nurse, assigned to check up on the gravely-injured martial artist. The nurse quietly closed the door behind her and locked it.

Walking over to the bound Mousse, she looked the boy over. He was fast asleep. Leaning into his ear, she whispered, "Wake up, duck-boy."

Mousse's eyes snapped open. He found himself staring into the face of Ranma. The hair was dyed black, but there was no mistake as to who Mousse was facing.

Ranma quickly reacted. She gagged Mousse before his screams could alert anyone to her presence, stuffing a balled-up handkerchief into his mouth and clamped down onto the gag, silencing him completely. Mousse tried to break free, but his bonds held him fast. He was at the complete mercy of the fallen Saotome. His one good eye looked at Ranma with total fear.

"I'm surprised that you're still alive," Ranma said as her hand remained over Mousse's mouth. "I thought Mint and Lime would have killed you. Oh well. Those two idiots served their purpose, as did the Musk Dynasty when they went to war against the Joketsuzoku. You should not have interfered in my match against Herb. Otherwise, the old hag and her bitch of a great-granddaughter would still be alive. Don't worry about Mint and Lime. I called in that favor that Saffron owed me back on Phoenix Mountain. To tell you the truth, Saffron was more courteous than Herb. When I told him that Herb was dead and the Musk was in chaos, it was something he could not resist. The Musk have all but been wiped out."

Mousse whimpered as the EKG's beeps began to increase, showing that his pulse was rising to dangerous levels. Soon, it became too much for Mousse, as he flatlined. Ranma reached over and turned off the EKG, leaving the doctors and nurses oblivious to what has happened inside the room. She checked for a pulse. There was none. Mousse was dead.

Ranma wasn't convinced. She had to make sure. Using a lethal pressure point she learned from the Musk training manuals she had stolen following the Musk's final battle with the Phoenix, she tapped Mousse on the chest. The dead boy's chest jerked violently upward before settling back down. The pressure point was designed to make the person's heart explode inside their body. If Mousse was faking earlier, he wasn't now.

Satisfied, the cursed martial artist leaned in to whisper into the dead boy's ear. "One more thing, Mousse," Ranma added softly as she removed the gag from his mouth, the death rattle escaping from slack lips, his eye vacant. "The person responsible for the destruction of your tribe was me. You can take that to your grave."

Ranma unlocked the door and left the room. As she passed the nurse's station, Mousse's doctor was looking over his notes when he asked, "How is the boy, nurse?"

"Don't worry about him, Doctor. He's dead to the world," Ranma replied casually, speaking in a Kansai accent, rounding the corner and disappearing into the night upon exiting the hospital.

* * *

The next morning, Genma and Soun returned to the hospital. Nabiki had tagged along with them, leaving Akane and Kasumi to tend to Nodoka.

Upon reaching Mousse's room, they found it empty.

"You're looking for your friend? The Chinese boy you brought in here?" Mousse's doctor asked as he exited the room.

"Yes, Doctor," Soun replied. "Where is he?"

"I'm sorry, but he died during the night," the doctor replied. "Whatever it was scared the poor kid to death."

'Probably Ranma,' Nabiki thought. She then asked the doctor, "Did someone visit Mousse while we were gone?"

"No, but a nurse did check up on him around midnight."

"Did she look like this?" Nabiki asked, showing the doctor a photo of Ranma's cursed half.

The doctor looked at the photo. "Nope. And I've been here all night. I would have noticed. Excuse me."

"One more thing," Nabiki said. "What will happen to the body?"

"Since he has no family, the body will be cremated and the ashes disposed of." That said, the doctor left the scene.

Nabiki turned to the two older men. "Ranma was here. I'm sure of it."

Soun nodded. "Indeed. The boy is tying up any loose ends. With the Amazons gone, there is nothing that can stop him from coming after the rest of us."

Genma nodded. "Indeed, Tendou. We must advance our plans to marry Akane and Ryouga by the end of the week. Only then do we stand a chance against the disowned."


	4. Chapter 3

_**Chapter Three**_

Friday had arrived.

The Tendou compound had been bustling with activity in regards to the upcoming wedding to Ryouga Hibiki and Akane Tendou.

Nabiki had orchestrated the entire event. She even went as far as to hire several members from Toudai's university and karate teams to act as security for the event, should Ranma decide to make an appearance at the Tendou-ke.

Even Nodoka got in on the planning. Genma was pleased to see that Nodoka was starting to recover from the incident with her former parents, assisting with the cooking and tending to Akane's wedding dress.

The wedding plans continued on for most of the morning. By noon, Nabiki hoped that her sister would be married.

* * *

Nabiki looked at her watch. The time read 11:55 am. Five minutes before the wedding will take place. She stepped outside of the compound. Three kendoists and three karateka guarded the gate, while four more of the kendoists and karateka guarded the challenge gate.

Nabiki smiled to herself. 'Let's see if Ranma can crash the wedding now,' she thought.

"Chief!"

Nabiki turned to the source of the voice. It was one of her many henchwomen, a senior who ran operations down at Fuurinkan High, running towards Nabiki. After ordering the guards to stand down, Nabiki confronted her subordinate. "What is it, Saya?" she asked after the younger girl came to a stop.

Saya produced a manila envelope from her back pocket. "I found this taped to my door this morning," she explained. "It's for you."

Nabiki took the envelope and looked at it. The folder looked like something that the local government would use. On the front the words **FOR NABIKI TENDOU'S EYES ONLY **was printed, along with the word **URGENT**.

"Did you see who gave it to you?" Nabiki asked as she eyed the file.

Saya shook her head. "Whoever did left it at my doorstep. When I saw that it was addressed to you, I came here right away."

Nabiki nodded. "Good work, Saya. You may go."

Saya bowed before turning around and left the scene. Nabiki looked at the folder in her hands. She didn't suspect that it was from Ranma, seeing as how she would recognize his sloppy handwriting anywhere. No, this was professional.

Her curiosity getting the better of her, Nabiki opened the envelope and pulled out its contents. It was a folder – city government level.

The subject of which the file was based on was of the Hibiki family.

Nabiki casually leafed through the pages, until she stopped, eyes wide. Whatever Nabiki was reading was indeed big. Even bigger than Ryouga's curse and lack of direction. That one secret that can be fatal to Ryouga was in Nabiki's hands.

Either way, she had a wedding to stop. She turned and bolted back inside the compound.

* * *

Inside the dojo, the wedding of Akane Tendou and Ryouga Hibiki was underway. As with the failed wedding with Ranma, the wedding was a Western ceremony.

Akane looked radiant in her wedding dress and veil, while Ryouga looked dapper in his tuxedo, Soun leading him to the dojo in order to keep him from getting lost. A local judge was conducting the ceremony, with Genma and Nodoka acting as witnesses, Kasumi as the maid of honor.

The rings had been exchanged and the judge was reaching the climax. "By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and –"

"WAIT!"

The shout, surprisingly had came from Nabiki.

The mercenary Tendou stalked towards the couple, anger evident on her face, the manila folder in her hand as she stormed across the dojo.

"Nabiki, what is the meaning of this?" Soun demanded as he stood in between his middle child and the dais.

"This wedding can't continue, Dad," Nabiki said. "Ryouga's been hiding something from all of us!"

"Nabiki, stop that!" Akane snapped. "Ryouga's been honest with me."

"Have he, now?" Nabiki retorted. "Explain to me why didn't he tell you that his family came from a long line of undertakers from his father's side and tanners from his mother's side?"

Soun paled. "You...you mean...Ryouga's one of **them**?"

Genma's expression became the same as Soun's own. "Are you saying what I think you're saying, Nabiki?"

Nabiki threw the folder at Ryouga's feet, where it opened, revealing detailed notes regarding Ryouga's family and ancestry.

"I am," Nabiki said. "Ryouga is an untouchable! **He is burakumin!**" she practically screamed.

"No..." Nodoka shook her head, as if all of this were a bad dream. "**No!**" she howled.

Akane slowly crouched down and picked up one of the documents. After slowly scanning it, she turned back to Ryouga. "Is this true?" she demanded. "IS THIS TRUE?!"

Ryouga laughed nervously. "Well...you see, Akane, I..."

"It **is** true," Nabiki snapped. "Ryouga is an untouchable!"

Murmurs were heard as Akane slowly digested the news. "You touched me..." she whispered. "I let you touch me...you made love to me, Ryouga..."

"**YOU TAINTED MY DAUGHTER!**" Soun shouted, in full-fledged Demon Head mode, causing the Lost boy to shrink away in fright. "**YOU TAINTED MY LITTLE GIRL WITH YOUR UNCLEANLINESS! YOU DESCECRATED MY HOME WITH YOUR PRESENCE!**"

"No, wait!" Ryouga shouted. "I can explain!"

"You can't blame Ranma for this, Ryouga," Nabiki snarled as her father reappeared, dressed in samurai armor and toting the family swords.

"YOU BASTARD!" Akane screamed, Mallet-sama in her hands.

Ryouga dodged the mallet swing from Akane, followed by hopping back to avoid the wild katana swings from Soun.

At that moment, Ryouga did the only thing he could do.

He ran.

Ryouga bolted out of the Tendou dojo, with Soun, Akane, Nabiki and Kasumi in hot pursuit. The guards assigned to protect the Tendou-ke also joined in the chase. Genma stayed behind, as did Nodoka, the latter mumbling to herself, having completely snapped.

* * *

Ryouga ran through the streets of Nerima, with the Tendous and Nabiki's guards hot on his heels. As he rounded the corner, he failed to notice the elderly woman splashing water on her sidewalk.

Akane's eyes bugged out of her skull – or came close to it when she saw Ryouga get splashed and a certain little black piglet came squirming out of the soaked tuxedo.

Almost immediately, she knew. She knew why Ranma had snuck into her room with a kettle of hot water whenever P-chan showed up. She knew why Ranma addressed Ryouga as P-chan and vice versa. Ranma had been trying to protect her and she had abused him for trying to do the right thing.

Akane's screams were heard all throughout Nerima.

"YOU'RE P-CHAN?! YOU SLEPT WITH ME AS A PIG, YOU HENTAI! I'M GONNA KILL YOU, RYOUGA!"

Ryouga ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Soon, Ryouga was out of Nerima, never to be seen again.

* * *

Ryouga was lost. Again.

He had narrowly escaped Nerima with his life. Now, he was hiding out in the forests outside of Tokyo, where has been for the past week.

Going to Akari's farm was out of the question, since she too has been notified about Ryouga's burakumin status and had chased him out with her sumo pigs.

"DAMN IT, RANMA!" he shouted to the skies. "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"

"Is it now, pig boy?"

Ryouga turned around. There, perched on a rock, was a smirking Ranma Himura, formerly Ranma Saotome.

Ryouga's sickly green aura sprang from around him. "RANMA! BECAUSE OF YOU, I'VE –"

Ranma cut him off. "Yeah, yeah, yeah, 'you've seen hell.' Tell me something I don't know, you honorless scum." She smiled evilly. "I was hoping that the Tendous would have killed you."

As she spoke, one hand was behind her back, gripping an item she had picked up from China.

The Chisuton – the Preservation Ladle.

And it was filled with water.

"Well..." Ranma thought about it for a moment. "I guess you can say that it's my fault this time around, pork breath. I paid one of Nabiki's underlings to give her that information regarding you and your family. I stumbled onto that piece of info by accident before Herb challenged me for his rematch. I had planned on using it against you so you can stay away from Akane. But I guess she doesn't want nothing to do with you." Her grin got wider. "And since Akane spread her legs for you, you tainted the entire family with your disgrace."

"You bastard!" Ryouga screamed. "YOU RUINED MY LIFE! DIE, RANMA!"

Ranma leapt over the Shishi Hokoudan, which destroyed the rock she had been perched on. Before Ryouga could launch another attack, Ranma brought the ladle into play. Ryouga felt cold water splash onto him, triggering the curse.

Before Ryouga could escape, Ranma picked up the squealing piglet from the ground. "I'm not done with you yet, P-chan," she said as she walked back into the direction of Tokyo. "I got something special planned just for you."

* * *

Tokyo Zoo.

Ranma carried the still-squealing Ryouga in one hand. The zoo was closed, but that didn't stop Ranma from sneaking in with the direction-challenged cursed martial artist.

After checking with a map, Ranma headed for her destination. "You always talked about making my life a living hell, pork-breath," she said. "You always claimed that you would destroy my happiness. Now look at you. I'm the one who destroyed your happiness. You should have left Nerima, Ryouga, otherwise your little secret about being an untouchable would have never been revealed."

"Bwee! Bu-kwee! (Ranma! I'm going to kill you! You're dead, you honorless bastard!)" Ryouga squealed.

"Whatever, P-chan," Ranma snorted. "In any cast, you wanted to kill me, but now you're the dead man. And here we are."

Ranma had reached her destination. The sign read in both Japanese kanji and English – **Siberian Tiger Exhibit**.

"Goodbye, Ryouga," Ranma said as she tossed Ryouga into the exhibit.

* * *

Tendou home, the following morning.

Kasumi's screams had brought Soun and his other two daughters to the kitchen. Inside, they found Kasumi, scampering away from an open package, whimpering.

A package that contained another beach photo, this time, Ryouga's face added to the X's.

Along with a shredded, bloodied bandanna.

Several more photos were inside the package, graphic photos of Ryouga's cursed form being chased by a Siberian tiger, being caught, and eaten alive. The bandanna in the package was proof of Ryouga's demise.

On the back of the beach photo was a note.

_**Looks like the tiger found honorless pigs tasty.**_

* * *

Following the fallout as a result of Ryouga's secret coming out, Nodoka had finally lost the remaining thread of her sanity.

One night, Nodoka was seen running through the streets of Nerima, naked and ranting at the top of her lungs. After being restrained by the police, Genma had no choice.

The following day, Nodoka was committed to the Tokyo Womens Asylum. Dressed in hospital scrubs and a straitjacket, Nodoka was dragged to a waiting ambulance by two burly orderlies.

"Sharp knife," Nodoka ranted, her voice low, but completely deranged. "Sharp knife to send him to deep temple. Flay...and say...my words." Her voice then raised in octaves until she was screaming, struggling as the orderlies tossed her into the van. "Abdul comes again, on the Feast of the Weaker. Feast...for the Deep...Temple! BORN AGAIN, HERE! ALHAZZARED! G'YETH! G'YETH!"

The door was closed and the van sped off, Nodoka Saotome leaving Nerima for the last time.

* * *

Kasumi, in the meantime, has had enough.

Losing Tofuu, seeing the Amazons destroyed, Nodoka being committed, as well as her family being tainted by Ryouga's burakumin status and his own demise has proved to be too much for the elder Tendou daughter.

As Genma and the other Tendous slept, Kasumi packed her clothes and took only her most treasured possessions with her. Leaving Genma and her family a farewell note, she silently made her exit in the dead or night.

* * *

Nabiki and Akane found their father in Kasumi's room the following morning, sobbing, Kasumi's note in her hand. Genma entered the room and plucked the letter from Soun's hand and began to read, with Akane and Nabiki looking over his shoulder.

_**To my family and to Mr. Saotome:**_

_**Forgive me. I cannot stay in Nerima any longer. By the time you read this, I will be gone. I will no longer reside in Nerima, not after what is happening to all of us. Don't worry about me. I have friends who will set me up with a place to live, a job, but more importantly, a new name and a new life, since our dealings with Ryouga and how we have treated Ranma have irreversibly tarnished our honor. Please don't come looking for me. **_

_**Goodbye.**_

_**Kasumi**_

"Kasumi..." Soun sobbed. "My baby girl is gone...gone forever..."

As Genma tried to console his friend, Nabiki turned and walked out of the room. Akane followed her. "Nabiki, where are you going?" the youngest of the Tendous asked.

"This has gone on long enough," Nabiki said. "It's time that all of Nerima has to be reminded why I'm known as the 'Ice Queen' of Nerima. I got more than enough dirt on half of the marketplace in Nerima, more than enough to bury them all." She stopped and turned to Akane. "You'll be back in Fuurinkan and Daddy will get his seat back on the council by the beginning of next week."

Nabiki walked off to prepare for the day. Soon, she had her underlings on the phone and gave them their marching orders.


	5. Chapter 4

_**Chapter Four**_

Snafu's Notes: Hoo, boy...this chapter was a doozy to write, since Nabiki bites off more than she could chew and she pays for her crimes and then some. Had to get in touch with my inner sadist to write this one. Enjoy. After this chapter, will be the final chapter of the fanfic, where Akane and Soun get their just rewards.

While the Tendous and Genma slept...

Kasumi exited the compound for the final time, her traveling bag on her back and a roll-on suitcase in her hand, dressed in a pair of slacks and a sweater, rather than her usual dress and apron. She turned around and looked at the place she has called home ever since she was a child. She had many good memories in Nerima, but now, the severity of the recent bad memories were beginning to outweigh the good.

Her family was on a one-way path to destruction and they didn't even see it coming. Kasumi sighed to herself. 'I should have said something in Ranma's defense,' she thought sadly as she remembered her role in driving Ranma away. 'If I had said something to try and stop Uncle and Auntie Saotome from disowning him, then none of this wouldn't have happened.'

Kasumi may have acted like the perfect housewife, but she wasn't by no means stupid. Ranma had acted honorable when Ryouga showed up, but her father and Genma had ordered her to keep Ryouga's curse under wraps in an attempt to bring their children together. That plan had backfired.

And the incident several days earlier...

Ryouga Hibiki was burakumin. Her family – but more importantly, her younger sister – had dealings with the untouchable. Akane would receive the worst of it, given the fact that she was engaged to him following Ranma being disowned. They even made love on several occasions, Akane giving herself to the Lost Boy willingly.

It was a miracle that her father did not disown Akane for doing the nasty with Ryouga.

Kasumi turned from the house and headed for the train station, where she would meet up with several of her high school friends, one of which whose parents were record keepers in the Japanese government.

Kasumi had everything planned out. She would simply leave Japan and start over. Another of her friends was the owner of a popular beach resort in Lanai City and had offered Kasumi a job. Kasumi had called and had asked if the job offer was still on the table, and decided to pack once the answer came back yes. She would spend time raising money for a one-way plane ticket while her friends here give her a new identity, a favor owed to Kasumi Tendou for a past debt.

Before Kasumi headed for the train station, she decided to make one final visit to her mother.

* * *

Nerima Cemetery.

Kasumi stood before the marker that contained her mother's name – **Makoto Tendou – beloved daughter, wife and mother**.

Kasumi sighed. "Ka-san...this will be the last time I will come and visit you. I am leaving Nerima. Things have gotten bad here. Father had not been the same since you had passed on. I have tried to hold the family together for many years, even when Ranma was a guest in our home." She sighed. "I should have said something to stop Genma from disowning his son. But I didn't. I thought that by disowning Ranma that we were preserving our own honor. Now...after what our family has been put through, what I have lost...I finally see that we were the ones without any honor, not Ranma. Given the recent events that has happened here, I thought that it would be best that I leave for good." She bowed. "Goodbye, Ka-san."

As Kasumi picked up her bags, she felt the presence of someone nearby. When she approached the gate, she froze in her tracks.

She could recognize the Chinese Maoist uniform and matching cap anywhere.

It was Ranma.

Kasumi let out a small gasp. He was once again male...and looking at her, deciding on what he should do with her.

Kasumi dropped her bags and in an attempt to pacify Ranma's righteous anger, sank to her knees and bowed, her head touching the ground, hands above her head.

"Please let me pass," Kasumi begged. "I have left the Tendou-ke. I finally realized that we had no honor when we abandoned you, and you were justified in your anger. I beg of you, Ranma. I have suffered enough. Tofuu has terminated our engagement, Nodoka was committed to an insane asylum and my family will soon suffer the taint of disgrace for having been acquainted with a burkumin. Not even Nabiki can cover that up, hard as she my try. This is my last chance to live a normal life. Please...I have suffered enough. Let me go."

For one full minute, neither person moved. In fact, Ranma had spied Kasumi leaving the Tendou compound and have decided to follow her. While hiding in the shadows, Ranma had heard Kasumi speak to her mother's headstone. Unlike the others, Kasumi acknowledged that she had done wrong, and had paid for her sins.

"Leave."

Kasumi brought her head up. Ranma had stepped aside.

"Leave Nerima," Ranma said in a cold tone, his anger being submerged in the Soul of Ice. "Leave Nerima and never return."

Kasumi got to her feet, thankful that she was spared Ranma's wrath. Grabbing her bags, she ran past Ranma and headed for the train station. Sure enough, her friends were waiting for her there and Kasumi left Nerima. This time, for good.

* * *

The following day, Nabiki went to work. She and her underlings had traveled all over Nerima and visited those who still supported Ranma. Her demands were simple: turn against Ranma or there will be hell to pay. She even confronted the school faculty and the Nerima council, demanding that her sister and father be allowed to return to their respective places, or else Nabiki will destroy their reputation within the community.

To the majority of Nabiki's marks, it was the final straw.

* * *

Nabiki strode into the ice cream parlor. The establishment was one of Ranma's old haunts, given his love for ice cream. The owner of the shop was the one person that Nabiki had nothing on her, sparing her from Nabiki's blackmailing and manipulations.

Even Nabiki herself was feeling the heat from her family's banishment. Despite having most of the business owners under her heel, she was refused entry from the marketplace. As she soon found out, the person directly responsible for her marks growing a spine was this particular shop owner.

The shop owner, a matronly woman by the name of Mion Watanabe, was behind the counter. The place was half-packed with students and several couples. Mion looked up and frowned upon seeing the middle Tendou at her counter. "What is it, Nabiki?" she asked in an annoyed tone.

"I underestimated you, Watanabe," Nabiki replied. "Out of all of the business owners in Nerima, you were the only one that I could not blackmail. Either you had no secrets, or you hid them well from me."

Rion shrugged her shoulders. "So give me a medal."

Nabiki smirked. "Actually, I'm going to give you a choice. I know that you are the main person responsible for banning my family and the Saotomes from the marketplace." She looked around at the establishment. "It would be a damn shame if this place closed down if the health inspectors found out there was cockroaches in the ice cream. I got some friends in the health department that could make it happen."

Rion raised an eyebrow Spock-style. "Are you trying to intimidate me, Tendou?" she asked dryly.

"Intimidation..." Nabiki repeated, as if offended. "Such a harsh word, coming from you, Watanabe. I prefer the term 'mutual agreement.' I know that this business is your livelihood. You got two children who are college students and this business is paying for their tuition. I just want one thing from you. You still support Ranma, and that is bad for my family. Ranma is nothing more than a memory. Are you willing to risk your livelihood on a memory? You got until Friday to decide. Forgive my family and abandon Ranma. If not, then this little shop of yours will be closed indefinitely, and you're gonna end up explaining to your children why your shop was closed down once they are kicked out of university."

"Are you finished?" Mion asked, arms folded across her chest.

Nabiki smirked. "Of course. I'll leave you to your business. How long you stay open will be up to you. Have a nice day, Watanabe." With that said, Nabiki turned and exited the building.

Once Nabiki was gone, one of the customers – who had overheard everything – approached Mion. Had Nabiki been paying attention, she would have noticed that the girl was one of her classmates.

Kimiko Sakamura was a business major in Tokyo University. She was also the younger daughter of Ryuji and Ruriko Tsubaki. Mion Watanabe was her godmother, and had been longtime friends with the Tsubaki family. Like her godmother, Nabiki had nothing on Kimiko, who saw the latter as a rival in Toudai.

Without saying a word to her godmother, Kimiko passed Mion her cellphone. Within minutes, Ruriko Tsubaki was on the line.

"Ah, Kumi-chan. What can your mother do for you today?" Ruriko greeted.

"Ruriko, it's Mion."

"Mion! How is my daughter's favorite godmother doing? Business still good for you?" the Yakuza chieftain asked. "I may have to put in a order for some ice cream."

"Ruriko, the Tendou girl was here. She found out that I was rallying the other owners, and threatened to close my business down."

A pause. If Mion had been in the same room as Ruriko, she would have noticed the temperature drop several degrees in the room.

"You did the right thing in calling me, Mion. I will take care of everything. Don't worry. You have done me a great service in letting me know about this. It's about time that the 'Ice Queen' gets her just rewards."

* * *

Ruriko flipped the cellphone closed. After a moment, she flipped it open and after several moments, decided on a course of action. The first call she placed was to a Tokyo Metropolitan detective who was a longtime friend of hers, who looked the opposite way concerning the Society's shady business deals. The second, was to a judge who was on the Society's payroll.

The police worked fast. At Ruriko's orders, Nabiki's underlings were arrested and held in jail. Under the threat of long prison sentences, they all agreed to testify against Nabiki. Within the week, Nabiki's enterprise was dismantled, without Nabiki's knowledge.

All that was left, was the Ice Queen herself.

* * *

Friday came and Nabiki was in class at Tokyo University, pleased with her actions. Today would be the day that things would return to normal for her family once she returned to Nerima following her classes. Akane would be allowed back into Fuurinkan and her father would return to his seat on the Nerima Council. But more importantly, the entire town would turn against Ranma.

Unfortunately for Nabiki, that was not going to happen. Little did Nabiki knew that she had been betrayed by her closest associates in exchange for leniency.

As Nabiki sat in class, the door opened and in stepped three people. A pretty-looking, middle-aged detective who looked like the Japanese version of the American actress Mariska Hargitay and two uniformed police officers.

Ignoring the professor, the woman and the two cops strode over to Nabiki. The woman spoke first. "Nabiki Tendou?"

"That depends," Nabiki replied. "Who wants to know?"

The woman flashed her badge. "Detective Yuria Shiro, Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. We have a warrant for you arrest. Stand up please."

Nabiki scoffed. "You have nothing on me. I am a model student here in Todai."

Shiro wasn't in the mood for Nabiki's games. "Miss Tendou, either you stand voluntarily..." She gestured to the two muscled cops standing behind Nabiki. "Or these men will 'help' you to your feet. Either way, you will stand."

"You can't intimidate me," Nabiki snapped, leveling her 'Ice Queen' mask at the detective. "I got friends in the police force and they will not be – OWW!"

Yuria tossed the cops a glance. In an instant, the two cops each grabbed an arm and hauled Nabiki to her feet. Nabiki yelped in pain as she felt her arms being wrenched painfully behind her back, followed by the cold steel of handcuffs being clicked closed.

"Nabiki Tendou, you are under arrest for the charges of blackmail, criminal trespass, forgery, criminal extortion, loan sharking, stalking, breaking and entering, bribery, criminal voyeurism, grand larceny, and conspiracy to commit all of the above," Yuria intoned. "You are also charged with ten counts of violating the Japanese Criminal Racketeering Act."

"You can't do this to me!" Nabiki shouted. "I have rights!"

"Criminals like you have no rights," Yuria replied. "Let's go, boys."

The three cops and their struggling prisoner then left the room. From her seat, Kimiko grinned. It was good to be the daughter of a Yakuza chieftain sometimes.

* * *

"You three have no idea who you are messing with, do you," a defiant Nabiki snapped as she was led down the deserted corridor. "I know people! Big people! Let go of me, you glorified Boy Scouts! I'll make all of you see hell by the end of the weekend!"

"I wouldn't bet my pension on it, Tendou," Yuria replied flatly. "You're finished."

"No...**you're** finished, Shiro," Nabiki retorted. "You'll be busted down to meter maid by the end of the –"

Nabiki's tirade stopped dead in her throat once they rounded the corner, and found themselves face-to-face with the last person Nabiki wanted to see.

Ruriko Tsubaki.

Almost immediately, Nabiki's ice mask broke upon facing Tofuu's aunt.

"Miss Tendou," Ruriko drawled. "I distinctly remember saying that I didn't want to see your face again. Yet, here you are. Frightened? You should be. Your little intimidation attempt was the final straw. Now you will pay." She turned to Yuria and the two officers. "Good work, Detective Shiro. You and your officers will be rewarded."

Nabiki blood froze. Yuria was in cahoots with Ruriko.

"Just doing my job," Yuria replied. Turning to Nabiki, she said, "Payback's a bitch, Tendou. You blackmailed several of my co-workers on the force. Ruriko here is an old friend of mine. When Ruriko approached me with the proposal to arrest you and dismantle your little operations, it was too good of a deal to pass up. I bust you and take the credit of destroying the 'Ice Queen.'"

"As I've mentioned in our last meeting, I do have friends in Nerima," Ruriko continued. "One of which is the godmother of my daughter. I think you know her as the owner of the ice cream shop in Nerima, Mion Watanabe."

Nabiki paled. No wonder Mion wasn't intimidated. She had backup.

Yuria then added fuel to the fire. "Oh, and by the way, as we speak, your associates are being interrogated at the police station, and have been for the past several days. We offered them immunity from trial if they testify against you. Your accounts have been frozen and your operations are all but destroyed. And with the new racketeering laws that the Japanese government has passed in the last month, you're looking at a very long stay in Tochigi Women's Prison."

Ruriko smiled evilly. "So how does it feel not to be in control, Tendou? Sucks, doesn't it? I'll bet the inmates and the crooked prison guards will enjoy you, Tendou."

Turning to Yuria, she said, "Get her out of my sight."

Yuria bowed and led the captive Nabiki down the hall. Within minutes, Yuria, the two cops and the handcuffed Todai student were outside. Nabiki was pushed into the backseat of a waiting car, the door slammed shut behind her.

* * *

Two weeks had passed since Nabiki was arrested and hauled off to jail.

Two weeks had passed since Nabiki's world came crashing down on her. Yuria was indeed telling the truth. Following a series of raids and arrests, Nabiki's underlings – girls she had went to junior high with – had sold her out in exchange for lesser sentences.

The trial lasted for three days. Over two hundred people – marks from the past years and her former underlings – had testified, acknowledging that Nabiki was the mastermind of the entire operation that had went back since middle school. Nabiki's family and Genma were present at the hearings.

And given the mountain of evidence against her from her ledgers to her bank accounts, Nabiki was indeed finished. She once had an expensive lawyer on call (thanks to her blackmailing), but the lawyer flatly refused to help her once he found out about Nabiki's arrest, forcing Nabiki to rely on a public defender instead.

Shortly before the trial had begun, Nabiki had received a letter from the senior faculty council at Tokyo University, notifying her of her expulsion from the university and the fact that she was banned and blacklisted for life. She would never be able to attend another university in Japan ever again.

The press had a field day with the case – a Japanese girl who was a virtual mob boss for a number of years. A Japanese girl who had nearly an entire town under thumb.

A Japanese girl who had crossed the line one too many times and was finally brought down by a decorated cop and the owner of a ice-cream shop who refused to be intimidated.

The trial ended, with the judges passing down a verdict of guilty on all counts.

"Nabiki Tendou, stand up, please," the judge ordered.

Clad in a prison jumpsuit and shackled, Nabiki rose from her chair. She no longer looked like the infamous 'Ice Queen of Nerima.' She looked like hell. Bags were under her eyes, and the eyes themselves were red, showing that she had been doing something that she had not done since her mother's passing.

She had been crying.

"Miss Tendou, I am appalled and shocked by the severity of your crimes," the judge said. "Crimes that you have been committing ever since you were in junior high. For a number of years, you had the Nerima Ward under your thumb and had free reign over the townspeople. No more, Miss Tendou. No more. Your reign of terror is officially over. Do you have any last words to say before sentence is carried out?"

"..." Nabiki was silent.

"Nabiki Tendou, because you have violated the Japanese Criminal Racketeering Laws, you have earned an automatic fifteen year sentence, followed by another fifteen years for your past crimes. Sentence of thirty years' imprisonment in the maximum-security wing of Tochigi Women's Prison. The sentences are to be served concurrently."

The judge ignored Soun's wails as well as the choked sobs of Akane.

"This court is adjourned. The prisoner is in remand until tomorrow morning, where she will be transferred from the jail to the prison."

* * *

Nabiki was ushered into an interrogation room, seated and cuffed to the chair. She had not stopped crying following the verdict and sentence.

Today was the day she was to be transferred to Tochigi.

Nabiki looked up as the door opened. Standing outside was a police officer. "You have five minutes," the officer said before stepping aside.

The person stepped inside, the guard closing the door behind him. Nabiki's eyes nearly bugged out of her sockets when she realized who the person was.

"You don't look too good, Nabs," Ranma quipped as he took a seat.

The Chinese clothes were gone, as was the pigtail, having changed into a suit and cutting the pigtail off but even Nabiki knew who he was.

And to top it all off, he was male.

Nabiki went white as a sheet. Her expression then changed to that of shock to total rage as she tried to leap out of her chair and strangle the cause of her ire. "YOU BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU!"

Ranma kept his smug expression. "You talk a big game for someone who is shackled to a chair." He walked over to the shackled woman and clamped one hand down onto her throat, choking the life out of Nabiki. "I could just as easily kill you and make it look like a suicide. Don't make me consider that option...although it would be priceless to see the look on your family's faces when they read about your demise in the newspaper." He released the death grip on Nabiki, the older girl coughing and hacking, gulping down air with every breath.

"Why?" she demanded. "Why are you doing this to us?!"

"You already know why, Nabiki," Ranma replied. "For the past two years, it was always 'Ranma do this,' 'Ranma save the dojo,' 'Ranma marry Akane to preserve the family honor.'" He snorted. "Honor my ass. Your family and Genma talked a big game about honor, but in the end, they are just as honorless as Ryouga...and you. Kasumi did the right thing in abandoning Nerima, but the damage to her was already done. I'm surprised you didn't find out that he was burakumin. You really should thank me for mailing you the info. Akane's single again, but the stigma of being engaged to Ryouga will forever taint her and your family."

"So it was you who mailed me the evidence on Ryouga," Nabiki whispered.

Ranma nodded. "You people were so gullible. You all thought I was just some dumb jock. That was a ploy to let your guard down, and you all fell for it. Especially Nodoka. I could have stopped you from taking those pictures, or blackmailing me. I just wanted you to give me enough rope so you can hang yourself." He grinned evilly. "And I was right. Ryouga is no longer an issue. I'll bet the tiger at the zoo enjoyed its midnight snack I brought him."

Nabiki paled at Ranma's admission. Ranma had confessed to eliminating Ryouga. Sure Ryouga was burakumin, but even he did not deserve such a fate.

"Let me tell you how much you and your family underestimated me, Nabs," Ranma continued. "You ever wondered what happened to Kunou-baka and his sister? The official story was that they went on vacation. The truth is that I orchestrated their own downfall by simply robbing them of their wealth, and simply watch them go insane. Kunou is living out the rest of his days in a hospice as a vegetable,. His sister and father, however, are not so lucky. They're both dead, victims of Kodachi's plants. With the exception of my trip to China, I've been hiding out at the now-deserted Kunou Mansion."

Nabiki shook herself out of her shock upon finding out the deaths of Kodachi and the former Principal Kunou. "You...your curse was locked...how..."

"How did I unlock the curse?" Ranma guessed. "Easy. I went to China and confronted Herb. Let me tell you something about honor, Nabs. Honor is nothing but complete and total bullshit designed by weak people to keep the strong in line. When the honor is removed, then there is nothing to hold you back. Getting the kettle back was easy, since Herb was too full of himself, thinking that he had beaten me. I unlocked my curse and used the ladle to lock Herb's in. Then I beat that little dragon bitch within an inch of her life and destroyed her ability to use her ki. I then decided to kill two birds with one stone. So I kidnapped Herb and made sure that his two idiot retainers saw me. They didn't recognize me, because I was dressed as Mousse. After killing several of the Musk guards and leading them on a wild goose chase, I dressed Herb in one of Shampoo's outfits and after provoking the Musk, I watched as they killed their master. Once Mint and Lime found out what they had done, they took up arms and the Musk went to war against the Amazons."

Nabiki sat there, appalled and at the same time scared at Ranma's sadism.

"Once Herb was taken care of, I made a visit to the local offices of the Communist Party. Luck was with me that day, since one of the Amazons had exercised the 'obstacle' rule and killed the wife and daughter of a high-ranking Party official. While the Musk was killing off most of the Amazons, I simply gave the authorities the location of the village. Once the Musk was thoroughly crippled, the Phoenix Tribe moved in and wiped them off the map. Good think I still had that life debt Saffron owed me, since he hated the Musk more than I did."

"It was you..." Nabiki whispered at Ranma's admission. "You destroyed the Amazons and the Musk."

Ranma nodded. "Bingo. I thought that sending the videotape would be more effective rather than sending a letter of my intentions. I personally delivered the tape to your home, disguised as a deliveryman, and called after you and the others finished watching it. Mousse wasn't very happy to see me either. The bastard died of sheer fright in the hospital. Mint and Lime were the perfect scapegoats. Saffron and the Phoenix tribe were very thorough when it came to wiping out the Musk. Mousse managed to escape back here, but Mint and Lime stopped him from trying to warn you, hence the reason why he looked like a truck fell on top of him. Kiima took care of those two personally. And now...you are no longer a thorn in my side, Nabs. You won't be able to stop me while I destroy your father and sister." Ranma's smile turned sadistic. "Last time I checked, Tochigi Women's Prison is pretty corrupt, with the drugs and prostitution and everything else in between. Better get used to whoring yourself to earn favor with the warden and the guards...or becoming someone's bitch in jail. Have a nice life, Tendou."

Ranma stood up and exited the room. Minutes later, Nabiki was retrieved, and filed into a waiting police van. Within minutes, she was on her way to her new home.

* * *

Tochigi Women's Prison – several hours later.

A cell is opened and Nabiki is shoved inside.

The prison guard slammed the door behind him. "Your ID number is WKD4496. Welcome to your new home, convict."

He walked off as Nabiki took in her surroundings. She was in a eight-by-ten foot solitary cell, a stark contrast to her old life. The only things in her cell were a cot, a sink and a toilet.

Nabiki slumped onto the bed, hugging her knees. Genma was right. Ranma had been playing her all along. She should have stopped while she was ahead, otherwise she would still be a free woman. She never thought she would get caught. She always thought that she was untouchable.

But thanks to Mion, Ruriko, Yuria and more importantly, Ranma, she was not as untouchable as she seemed.

And now, thanks to those four, she was in prison for most of her adult life. By the time she would be released, she would be an old woman.

Once again, Nabiki Tendou broke down and cried.

* * *

Back in Nerima, a block party was taking place in the market.

The townspeople were celebrating the downfall of Nabiki Tendou. No more will she manipulate and blackmail innocent people for her own ends.

Soun Tendou and his remaining daughter were inside the compound, along with Genma Saotome. Several of Nabiki's former victims had gathered outside the front gates, pelting them with rotten vegetables, shouting and cursing the Tendou family's name. They even went as far as to destroying the dojo sign and burning an effigy of Nabiki at the compound's gates. The police was gathered nearby to make sure that this doesn't change into a full-blown riot.

The Tendou clan was in a downward spiral. Without Nabiki to manage the household's finances and to bring money in, the family was in big trouble. This Soun knew.

Resting nearby, was another of Ranma's envelopes, opened. Nabiki's crossed-out picture joined the others on the photo, and a note on the back.

_**Two more to go. Your move, Tendou. **_

* * *

Narita Airport.

"Attention. Japan Airlines flight 1104 to Lanai City, Hawaii is now boarding."

Seated inside the airport's terminal, the young woman with the short hair (Think Love Hina's Kitsune Konno) picked up her bag and prepared to board the plane.

The woman showed her ticket to the attendant, who nodded and returned it to woman. After following the other passengers down the boarding ramp, she entered the plane and found her seat. Stuffing her overnight bag under the seat, she sat down and looked out the window, watching the airport workers go about their duties.

Her name was Naomi Kusanagi. She was formerly known as Kasumi Tendou.

In the days following her exile from Nerima, Kasumi had been staying with friends in Kabukicho, while working as a hostess for one of the many bars that catered to salarymen. If was while hiding in Kabukicho that she had kept up with the trial of her younger sister.

Kasumi considered herself lucky to have gotten out of Nerima. She considered herself lucky that Ranma had spared her further pain.

She also had cash saved up, along with several savings bonds that her mother had left for her when she decided to attend college. Now, she was using them to give herself a new identity and to leave Japan.

Deciding that now was the perfect time to leave, following the aftermath of the trial, Kasumi purchased a ticket, one-way, and thanked her friends, who had given her a new identity. Kasumi then altered her appearance by cutting her hair short and shedding her original name. Kasumi Tendou officially no longer existed.

As the airplane slowly backed out of the terminal and headed for the runway, Naomi pulled out an old photo form her pocket. It was a picture of her family and the Saotomes, taken before the failed wedding. A wedding that Nabiki had wrecked by inviting the fiancees and rivals to, causing massive damage to the dojo.

The picture was also her last link to her old life.

Once the plane was in the air and over the Pacific Ocean, Naomi pulled it out for the last time, and tore it into several pieces.

* * *

Tochigi Women's Prison.

Two days had passed since Nabiki was sent to prison. Since then, her life was once was that she had threatened to make her victims.

A living hell.

The first day at Tochigi she had already attracted the attention of several of the more butch prisoners and several prison guards. One of the guards, a walking mountain of muscle named Gendo, who was the captain of the guard, had taken an interest in the disgraced Tendou. Gendo could have worked for the Yakuza, given his questionable morals. But he chose to instead work as a prison guard, given his taste for women and the free tail he can get.

Right now, Nabiki was inside her cell. She felt hot, but the air conditioner was running, and she didn't know why. She felt a tingling sensation over her body as she unzipped her jumpsuit partially down, exposing her cleavage (for some strange reason, she was issued any underwear) in an attempt to get some air.

Her chain of thought was interrupted as her cell door opened and the captain of the prison guard. Nabiki felt chills running down her spine.

"Well, well, well," Gendo drawled. "It's just you and me now, sweet cheeks."

Nabiki knew she was trapped. The one time that she needed Ranma to save her and she wasn't there. She had abandoned him along with the rest of her family.

Karma can be a real bitch, sometimes.

"I've heard about you," Gendo continued. "You're that ice bitch from Nerima. You blackmailed several of my friends there. When they told me that you were coming to Tochigi, I had to be the one to welcome you **personally**."

Nabiki whimpered. She knew what **that **meant. But at the same time...she felt turned on. Gendo – she had to admit – was one of the better-looking guards at Tochigi.

"You feel hot don't you?" Gendo asked. He continued on without waiting for an answer from Nabiki. "That's because I had the cafeteria workers spike your food and drink with a special type of drug. It's really effective, sweet cheeks. The drug causes arousal in the long term – of which you are feeling now. It also accetuates pleasure while depriving the victim of their will, leaving only the desire to please whoever is fucking them. It also acts as a birth control, so don't worry about getting pregnant...unless I want to punish you."

"No..." Nabiki moaned. "Please...anything but that..."

"You got no help now, Tendou," Gendo continued. "And no one is not coming to help you this time. So you got two choices. You do what I tell you to do and we'll get along just fine. Otherwise..." He drew out his baton. "...I'll take what I want from you and you get a one-way trip to the prison hospital...and I **hate **to beat down a pretty young thing like yourself without tasting the goods first."

Nabiki knew she had no choice. There was no one coming to save her now. She was damned.

She slowly stood up and began to unzip her jumpsuit.

Gendo nodded approvingly as Nabiki began to strip. "Good girl."

* * *

Tendou-ke, Nerima.

The party had died down, but was still going on strong at the marketplace. The streets were clear enough for Soun to retrieve the mail, stepping over scores of rotting produce and the burned remains of Nabiki's effigy. He saw that the townspeople had spray-painted obscene comments, cursing himself and his family.

Once Soun was safely behind the walls, he saw that Genma had entered the room. Soun saw that he had his travel bag slung over one shoulder.

"Saotome, where are you going?" Soun asked.

"I'm leaving," the crippled Saotome replied. "I can't stay here anymore, Tendou. Ranma is out for blood and as long as I remain, he may return to finish me off. You saw what he did to Nabiki. He killed Mousse and Ryouga. I don't want to die, Tendou. I'm sorry."

With that, Genma Saotome - showing that he was truly indeed a coward - left the Tendou home and Nerima, leaving Soun and Akane alone.

* * *

Tochigi Women's Prison.

Gendo finished getting dressed, as Nabiki laid on the bed, naked, eyes glazed over, her sweat-covered body shivering, unwillingly basking in the afterglow of the intense sex that she had experienced.

The prison guard exhaled sharply. "Wow. Didn't know you were a virgin, sweet cheeks," he said. "Either way, I own you now, Tendou. I own your ass."

"..." Nabiki was silent.

Back in Nerima, she would tell her marks the same thing, that she owned them. Now, with a prison guard telling her the same thing, she felt lower than dirt. She felt lower than Ryouga. But she didn't have any choice in the matter. Not that she had none to begin with upon arriving in Tochigi.

"You're gonna be my exclusive girl," Gendo said. "As the senior prison guard, whatever I say, goes. You'll be under my protection from the other guards and the other butch prisoners, so long as you know your place. You open your legs to me and behave like a good little bitch, and you will enjoy my good graces." His voice turned cold, as did his face. "But you cross me **just once**, and I'll throw you to the dogs. Understand?"

Nabiki slowly nodded.

"Good," Gendo replied smiling. "I'll see you around, sweet cheeks." He left the cell, locking it behind him.

Without getting dressed, Nabiki turned on her side and wept bitter tears. Her old life was over. The 'Ice Queen of Nerima' had been finally overthrown. She was now a prisoner, a sex toy at the mercy of the most crooked prison guard in the Japanese penal system.

"_Better get used to whoring yourself to earn favor with the warden and the guards...or becoming someone's bitch in jail. Have a nice life, Tendou."_

Nabiki remembered what Ranma had said before she was sent here. His words did indeed ring true. Gendo had turned her into what he called his 'exclusive girl.' Back in Nerima, she gave her marks no choice in bowing to her demands. Now, the tables were turned, and Nabiki was forced to have a taste of her own medicine, and it was indeed bitter.

She was on her own now, and in order to survive, she had no other choice but to follow Gendo's wishes.

'Mother,' she thought as she continued to cry. 'Forgive me.'

* * *

With the exception of the drunken gangbang with six of Gendo's co-workers inside the prison guards' break room that served as Nabiki's 'breaking in,' Gendo was a good as his word. Nabiki was his 'exclusive girl.' The gangbang was the only time that Gendo allowed Nabiki to service other men from himself. The drug had done its job well.

The drug also had an unexpected side effect. It had Nabiki more easier to control.

Soon, Nabiki would be completely turned out.

Nabiki will forget why she was brought to Tochigi. She will even forget her family and her name. All that remained in Nabiki's life was to please Gendo in any and all ways possible as her IQ slowly degraded from the drug, giving her the smarts of a California beach bimbo.

* * *

Tendou compound, Nerima.

Two weeks had passed since Nabiki's trial.

Akane was in the dojo, breaking bricks when she heard her father's anguished cry (or was it a scream?) coming from the main house. Fearing that Ranma had returned to exact his final vengeance, Akane rushed out of the dojo, mallet in hand and ran into the house.

Instead, she found her enraged father seated at the dining room table, an open envelope in hand, the address was that of a P.O. box.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Akane asked. She looked around, but saw no Ranma. "Where's Ranma?"

Soun's aura was visible as he pointed to the pictures. He was pissed. Akane looked down and gasped.

Pictures of Nabiki. Graphic pictures of Nabiki, naked, with several men. And women. Graphic pictures of Nabiki doing various sexual acts that would have even made a doujinshi artist blush. And from the look of things, she...she **liked** it.

The last few photos was of Nabiki with blonde hair (Gendo had ordered her to get it bleached), her face covered in makeup, and in a partially-opened yukata as an unseen man ravaged her, the look on her face showing nothing but total euphoria.

Akane swallowed. "Is...**that **Nabiki?" she whispered.

"She is no daughter of mine," Soun said in a cold voice. "Not anymore."

With Kasumi and Genma abandoning him and Akane, followed by the trial that further dragged the family's name through the mud, Soun was starting to lose his grip on reality.

Akane looked at her father. "Daddy..."

"That...that..." Soun pointed to the pictures, anger and rage consuming the fiber of his being. "That...**whore **is no longer your sister, Akane. She is nothing more than a filthy slut who willingly spread her legs to any and all men and women. **She is dead to me and to you**."

"But Daddy –" Akane began.

Soun cut her off. "I am going to the town hall and have her removed from the clan roster. I will not have a slut of a daughter taint the Tendou name any longer. She is no longer your sister, Akane." He slowly stood up and stalked out of the house, slamming the gate behind him.

Akane slumped to her knees. "Nabiki...what have they done to you?" she whispered to herself.

Within minutes, her brain then went back to its usual programming.

And the funny thing was that the usual cause of her ire wasn't even responsible for mailing those photos. That was entirely Gendo's doing.

'Damn you, Ranma,' she thought. 'This is all your fault. You're gonna pay for what you did to my sister. You're gonna pay for what you did to me and my family. The next time we meet...you're gonna die!'


	6. Chapter 5

_**Chapter Five**_

Snafu's Notes: This is it The final chapter. For Soun and Akane's punishments, you won't see this one coming.

A month had passed since Soun had disowned Nabiki in a rage upon finding out that she had been turned out out inside Tochigi.

Since then, the pictures of Nabiki Tendou - or rather, the former Nabiki Tendou - had found its way into the ward, thanks to Gendo's contacts. Nabiki, formerly the 'Ice Queen,' tarnished the Tendou family name name even further. With the Tendou family honor already in shambles following their dealings with Ryouga Hibiki, Soun was slowly starting to lose his grip on reality.

Akane, on the other hand, had been obsessed with getting her hands on Ranma. Following the trial, conviction and the subsequent turning out of her sister, Akane had been training. Her father hadn't been of any help, as he hadn't been of any help following his wife's death, forcing Akane to train by herself.

* * *

Outside of Nerima, Genma Saotome had been hiding out at Ryouga's old campgrounds. Ever since Nabiki's downfall, Genma had abandoned the Tendous in an attempt to hide from his former son.

And given Genma's current condition, he would not even be a match for Ranma, who had long since surpassed him in the Art.

The crippled Saotome sat in front of the campfire, poking at it with a branch as several pieces of fish roasted over a spit, having caught them earlier. His sake level was halfway low, having pilfered Soun's supply upon abandoning the Tendous following Nabiki's conviction and incarceration. Even he was appalled over the raunchy photos of the fallen Tendou upon visiting the Nerima market incognito in order to pick some supplies.

Genma sighed as he continued to poke at the fireplace.

"Leaving Nerima so soon?"

Genma froze at the sound of his son's voice. In an instant, he dumped the bucket of cold water he originally intended for dousing the fire over his head, triggering his change as Ranma emerged from the woods.

Playing with a tire, Genma-panda whipped out a sign. 'No one here except a cute panda.'

"And I am not amused," Ranma replied as he yanked the sign from the panda's paw and smashed it over the animal's head.

As Genma-panda was stunned, Ranma reached in and tapped a special pressure point at the base of Genma-panda's neck. The pressure point that Ranma had tapped held several important nerve clusters, which rendered Genma-panda unconscious. The Anything Goes equivalent of the infamous Vulcan Nerve Pinch.

* * *

When Genma came to, he realized three things. One: he was human; Two: he was tied up and hanging from a tree branch; Three: he was covered from head to toe in various fish products.

Ranma was on the ground, holding the rope in one hand. "Welcome back, old man."

Genma's eyes went wide as he realized his son's intentions. Beneath him was a pit. A pit filled with over three dozen starving housecats.

"Payback's a bitch, Genma," Ranma said. "Good thing the Phoenix were helpful in curing my cat phobia. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to round up all of these cats."

"You know this won't work on me, Ranma!" Genma shouted. "You have to be under ten years old in order to learn Cat-fu! This is torture!"

Ranma grinned. "That's the idea, old man. What's good enough for me is good enough for you." He then released the rope, causing a screaming Genma to fall into the cat-filled pit.

For several minutes, Genma's screams and the yowls of the hungry housecats echoed throughout the forest. After five minutes, Ranma pulled Genma out of the pit. His body was covered in numerous scratches. While not fatal, they were indeed painful.

Ranma tied his end of the rope to a tree and after throwing several buckets of salt on the man (causing much more pain) and covering Genma with more fish products, dropped him into the pit once again. Ranma casually munched on a broiled piece of fish as the cats mauled Genma, not really caring about the screams that were coming from the pit. This, Ranma did to his ex-father for a good hour and a half, until he ran out of fish-related products to cover Genma with.

"You have no idea how tempting it is to just tie you to a tree and return to town to buy and cover you with more fish products and to leave you with your little friends," Ranma said as he pulled Genma out of the pit, now covered head-to-toe with scratches and bite marks, and moved him so that he was back on the ground. "But I got something else planned for you."

"Please..." Genma groaned from the intense pain. "Just kill me...make the pain stop..."

"You're whining like...a girl!" Ranma snapped as he kicked Genma in the stomach, sending Genma into the air. The balding man landed on his back, screaming and squirming from the unbearable pain. "'A martial artist's life is full of peril.' You told me that plenty of times. You're a lot like Soun. You hide behind honor until your plans are compromised...or if Nodoka threatened to gut you with her katana. No, Genma Saotome. As much as the idea is tempting, I will not kill you."

Crouching down beside Genma, Ranma jabbed one finger into Genma's chest. Genma's eyes weat wide as he realized what Ranma had done.

Ranma had used the Full Body Cat's Tongue shiatsu point on him.

"You can just live as a lame panda for the rest of your life," Ranma replied as he removed his finger from Genma's chest. Then he picked up a thermos and splashed Genma with it, triggering his curse.

Then Ranma picked up a kettle of hot water and upended it over Genma-panda, who roared in pain, but did not change back.

"No Amazons to give you a Phoenix Pill this time, Genma," Ranma said. "Although I would be careful around hot water from now on. Now go, before I decide to make you into a panda-skin rug."

Whimpering, Genma-panda turned and hobbled away from his son, his wails echoing into the forest. His former son had stripped him of not only his martial art ability, but also stripped him of his humanity.

Ranma watched as Genma-panda vanished into the forests, leaving him to the fates. Genma was no longer a threat. Turning back in the general direction of Nerima, he thought to himself, 'That kawaiikune bitch and her crybaby of a father are the final victims of my vengeance. And I got just the thing for Akane.'

* * *

Tendou home, Nerima.

A month has passed since Kasumi's departure and Nabiki's incarceration and subsequent disownment by Soun.

Inside the Tendou compound, the two remaining members of the once-respected Tendou family went about their normal routine...or as normal as it will ever get for Soun and Akane Tendou, given the fact that they had lost two members of their family. Soun was reading the paper while Akane was practicing in the dojo.

Surprisingly enough, Akane's martial arts abilities had drastically improved. With the Nerima Wrecking Crew gone, Akane managed to focus her attention on her training.

Without Nabiki to hold the debt collectors at bay, the bills started to pile up. Soun had gotten a call from the mortgage company a day earlier, the company threatening to seize his home and dojo if he failed to make payment.

Fortunately, Akane had given her father a reprieve, having competed in a junior martial arts tournament in Okinawa and winning first place. She gave the money to Soun, which allowed him to pay part of what the mortgage company demanded.

However, Akane's luck would soon run out.

* * *

Outside, a sedan pulls up to the front of the vandalized compound. The doors open and out stepped a teenage girl about Akane's age and a older man carrying a briefcase and a suit. The girl was downright gorgeous – dark hair that was slightly longer than Akane's and a figure that only Ranma's cursed half could match.

They both looked at the dojo sign, which was still legible despite the graffiti on it – **Tendou School of Indiscriminate Grappling. Challengers use the side gate.**

The girl and the dark-suited man exchanged a glance before heading over to the challenge gate. The girl brought one delicate hand up to ring the challenge bell.

Moments later, Soun answered the gate. Akane showed up seconds afterward. "Can I help you?"

"I'm here to issue a challenge to Akane Tendou," the girl replied simply.

Akane stepped forward. "That's me. Who are you?"

The other girl inclined her head. "Sonia Minazuki, of the Minazuki-ryu Aikijujitsu School," she introduced herself. "Akane Tendou, I am here to formally challenge you to a fight. Will you accept?"

Akane sized the girl up. Ever since winning the tournament, her pride in her martial arts abilities have soared. What also caught her attention was that she was being challenged by a member of the Minazuki clan, one of the most influential and most powerful clans in Japan...and very, very rich.

For Akane and Soun, it was their ticket out of debt.

"About time someone realized that I was the best in Nerima," Akane said, not ignoring the warning klaxons that were going off in her head. "Name the time and place."

"Tomorrow at noon, here in your dojo. Will you accept?"

Akane nodded. "I accept."

Sonia smiled. "Good." She gestured to the man in the suit, who produced several documents. "Sign the papers, please." Off Soun and Akane's expression Sonia continued. "This is a formal letter of challenge. If you sign it, then that means you have accepted the challenge. Oh, I will also need your family seal on these papers as well."

Soun and Akane both signed the papers, and Soun produced his hanko and stamped it onto the binding document.

Sonia also signed it and produced her family hanko and stamped the piece of paper. "I will see the both of you tomorrow," she said before bowing sightly and leaving the compound along with her personal aide.

* * *

The following day...

Akane stood before her opponent inside her dojo. As always, Akane wore her yellow karate dogi. Her opponent, on the other hand, was dressed in a traditional black-and-white hakama. Also present were Soun Tendou, as well as Sonia's parents and her personal aide.

Akane warmed up, as did Sonia. 'I'll show them!' the remaining Tendou thought. 'I'll show them all! Once I put away Minazuki, Ranma will be next!'

"Before we begin, there is something that I had forgot to mention." Sonia's voice had cut through Akane's thoughts of maiming Ranma. "As you know, the Minazuki clan prides itself on its achievements. And in according with the proud tradition of my family, the Minazuki clan proposes a small gamble, if you will."

Seeing as how she had Soun and Akane's attention, Sonia continued. "Your family has been hit hard in the past month, Akane, so this is what I propose. If you defeat me in combat, then the Minazuki clan will clear the debts of the Tendou clan. However, if I am victorious...then I will issue my judgment at the conclusion of the match. And you will be honor bound to accept my request, since you and your father did sign the challenge papers beforehand. Agreed?"

Akane nodded. "Fine. Don't get mad at me when you lose."

The two girls bowed, before assuming their stances. Soun stepped in between and gave the signal to start the match.

"Ready...BEGIN!"

Akane charged, fist raised in a knockout blow. Sonia stood her ground. As Akane let her fist fly, Sonia's hands caught the fist and in a Geese Howard-style counter, used Akane's momentum against her by lifting her and slamming her to the dojo floor hard.

Akane managed to recover, but Sonia had the momentum. The youngest Tendou could not get an attack in, since Sonia was upon her, unleashing a volley of punches and kicks, most of which had broken through the Tendou's guard. Akane was struck repeatedly in her face and torso.

Finally, as Akane tried to grapple with her, Sonia, proving to be the faster of the two, got behind Akane and as Soun watched in horror, Sonia applied a chokehold on his daughter. Akane tried to fight her way out of the chokehold, but Sonia was clearly the stronger of the two, as she applied pressure onto Akane's throat, which soon had the desired effect, rendering Akane unconscious.

Sonia then mercifully released Akane, who fell facedown on the ground.

It was over.

Akane had lost, and would be out cold for the moment. Sonia was triumphant.

The battle hadn't even lasted for less then two minutes.

The victor sniffed. "And here, I had high hopes for a challenge." Sonia turned to Soun. "Your daughter disappoint me, Tendou. Maybe her victory in Okinawa was a fluke after all. And seeing as how I won the match, here is my stipulation: your daughter has to accept a lifetime ban on practicing your school."

"What?!" Soun sputtered. "That's not fair!"

"Life's never fair, Tendou," Sonia replied. "Get used to it." When it looked like that Soun was going to argue, Sonia pulled out her trump card. "You and your daughter signed the challenge letter and it clearly states that I have the right to give out which stipulation I chose. If you fail to honor your end of the bargain, Tendou, then I will take you to court. And once I show these documents to the judge, he will rule in my favor." She looked around the dojo. "I could use a nice vacation home in Nerima. You and your daughter signed the contact and you and your daughter will have to honor it...as honor **demands**. Otherwise, I get your home for my own use and you and your daughter will be tossed to the streets."

Soun's shoulders slumped downward. He did sign the contract, which meant he was honor-bound to follow its wishes.

Seeing as how she had won the argument, Sonia smirked at the distraught older man. "Glad you decided to see it my way," she said. She mockingly bowed at Soun. "Have a nice day, Tendou."

Sonia then left the dojo, her aide and her parents following behind her. After they Minazukis were gone, Soun slowly sank to his knees, sobbing softly, his grip on sanity eroding even more.

* * *

Outside, Sonia and her entourage had piled into the sedan and drove off. Once they were out of Nerima, Sonia's aide handed his mistress a cellphone. Sonia dialed a number and after a few rings, the person on the other end picked up.

"It's me," Sonia spoke into the phone. "I've done what you've asked...yes, I've forced the Tendous into accepting the ban on Anything Goes...you may send the payment for my services to the Minazuki offices, Sunshine 60, thirty-first floor, Suite 3F...a pleasure doing business with you, Ranma."

* * *

The Nekohanten, or what **used **to be the Nekohanten.

Ranma hanged up the phone, smiling to himself. Hiring Sonia Minazuki to fight Akane was a spur-of-the-moment decision. But in the end, it proved to be quite useful, as it knocked Akane down several more notches.

The former Saotome sat in the dining area of the former ramen shop. Following Nabiki's arrest, Ranma had moved from the Kunou mansion to the deserted Nekohanten, so that he could be closer to the Tendous as he planned their final downfall.

As Ranma knew from his stay with the Tendous for the past two years, they held onto a warped sense of honor, blaming him for any and everything even when it wasn't even his fault. And now, given what Ranma had put the Tendous through, their honor was down nearly to nothing.

The one thing he did not have a hand in, however, was the incarceration and breaking of Nabiki Tendou. His hands were clean with that one. All he did was notify Tofuu about Kasumi's hypocrisy and Tofuu did the rest by getting his aunt involved. Nabiki had bitten off more than she could chew, which was why she had endured her fate. And given the fact that he also saw the photos of the broken middle Tendou girl, even he had to admit that Nabiki had a hot body.

'Too bad she's been turned out,' Ranma thought.

Ranma also knew that the Tendous would not honor the contract. Well, Akane would not honor it, at least, once she finds out that he is hiding in Nerima. The former Saotome leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head, smiling to himself as he played out his carefully thought out plan.

Ukyou would return to Nerima in three days, and would prove to be useful in baiting Akane into coming to the Nekohanten. The reason why Ranma decided to wait was to make Akane even more mad, given that she is now banned from using Anything Goes. The longer the wait, the more pissed Akane would be, meaning that she would be even less focused when the time comes. Then he would make himself known and Akane will attack him, despite being banned from using her family style, thus reducing the already-damaged Tendou honor to shambles.

Ranma knew that Soun held honor in high regard, but since losing his eldest daughter and disowning the middle one, Soun would crack under the pressure. Honor demanded that Soun did the honorable thing in disowning Nabiki, and it would be the same twisted honor that would drive Soun to madness.

Little did anyone knew, Soun was already suffering Ranma's wrath. Beating the shit out of the Tendou patriarch would not satisfy Ranma. Instead, Ranma thought of the perfect punishment and even Happi had to agree that it was devious, yet perfect.

Soun's punishment was simple. Brutal, yet simple, and Ranma didn't even have to lift a finger. Soun would simply watch. Watch helplessly as Ranma stripped everything he held dear – his family, his family's honor and his home. Akane was his last link, and Ranma came up with something fitting for the boy-hating tomboy, which would more than likely send Soun off the deep end.

"Soon," he whispered to himself. "Soon, this will be over and I will be avenged."

* * *

Three days had passed.

Unknown to Soun and Akane Tendou, it was they Judgment Day.

Since then, Akane's temper had been on a hair trigger upon finding out the stipulations of her match against Sonia Minazuki (as always, Akane had claimed that Sonia had cheated in her match). The Art was her life, and it had been brutally stripped from her, as was everything in her life following Ranma's expulsion.

Soun had explained that they had to honor the agreement, otherwise Sonia would take them to court and they could probably lose the house. Akane had no other choice but to follow her father's wishes and accept the ban.

The people of Nerima didn't make it any easier on her. The ban regarding the Tendous' access to the market had been lifted, following Nabiki's 'departure,' but even Akane was not spared the ridicule from the other Nerimans. She wanted to beat them down. She wanted to scream. She wanted to pound Ranma into powder for the hell she had put her family through.

She tried to connect with her former friends Yuka and Sayuri, but the pair still wanted nothing to do with Akane, and made their intentions clear when Akane visited them at Yuka's house, Yuka telling Akane that she wanted nothing to do with her, effectively ending their relationship once and for all and slamming the door in Akane's face.

Which is why Akane found herself wandering the streets of Nerima, until she found herself walking down the streets of the Nerima Marketplace.

She passed the building that housed the Nekohanten – and unbeknown to her, the place where Ranma was hiding at the moment, making the final arrangements for her final downfall – and several more, the gathered populace whispering behind her back, the rumor mill running rampant following her botched wedding to Ryouga. When those racy photos of Nabiki showed up in Nerima, the rumors and taunts intensified.

Soon, Akane found herself standing in front of Ucchan's Oknomiyaki. And it was open, signaling to Akane that Ukyou had finally returned.

Following Ranma being disowned, Ukyou's father had found out about what had happened. But it was Ukyou who had found out the reason **why **Ranma had been forsaken by those he once called friends and family. Thankfully, Ranma had spared his one-time 'cute fiancee' of his vengeance.

In the month that had passed, Ukyou had reconnected with her father, who finally acknowledged her femininity. At Ranma's request, she had stayed in Osaka, tending to her ailing father. Once he was well enough to start cooking again, Ukyou, along with her gender-confused male kunoichi/assistant Konatsu, returned to Nerima.

Akane entered the building.

The place had just opened, and Ukyou Kuonji was behind the grill. She was still dressed in her oknomiyaki seller's uniform, only this time, one could see the curves in her chest, since Ukyou had stopped using the chest bindings. and to any male observer, it was clear that Ukyou was...stacked. The Baker's Peel rested nearby, while Ukyou still had her customary bandoleer slung over one shoulder, miniature throwing spatulas stuck inside.

"Welcome to Ucchan's," Ukyou greeted. She then looked up, just in time to see Akane plop down in front of the grill, and immediately frowned. "Oh. It's you, Akane." She folded her arms under her chest. "What do you want, huh? Came to gloat that you and your family drove Ranma-honey away instead of helping him unlock his curse? Some fiancee you are. I think you should leave. Having someone who was engaged to a burakumin inside my restaurant is bad for business. After all, you've been tainted by Ryouga when you slept with him."

"I didn't exactly see you come to Ranma's aid either, Ukyou," Akane retorted. "You were nowhere to be found when...when..."

"Ha! You can't even say it!" Ukyou snapped. "As to where I was, I was in Osaka visiting my sick father. Somehow, he found out that Ranma was disowned and declared the marriage pact between him and that fat panda null and void, that my honor had been restored, at the cost of Ranma's own! Fortunately, Ranma-honey had notified me personally and told me that I was spared from his blood feud."

"Shut up!" Akane shouted, her aura rising. "You have no idea what that honorless bastard has put my family through, so don't you dare take the moral high road with me, Kunoji! Thanks to that sex-changing freak, I got kicked out of Fuurinkan, my father lost his seat on the council, and Tofuu dumped Kasumi! Because of him, I almost married a goddamned burakumin! Because of him, Auntie Nodoka went insane and had to be committed! Because of him, I lost two sisters! Kasumi abandoned the family and we don't know where she has gone! Nabiki had been arrested and sent to prison!"

Ukyou sniffed. "So the 'Ice Queen' isn't as untouchable as she had originally thought herself to be. Serves her right."

"Don't you dare talk about Nabiki that way," Akane threatened. "Because of that pervert, Nabiki had been turned out in jail, and Daddy disowned her! On top of that, I'm forbidden to use Anything Goes after I lost a match! Now the whole town knows that I lost and they rub it in my face, along with the fact that Nabiki is a whore!"

"So Miss 'I'm-a-martial-artist-too' has her panties in a bunch because she can't practice the art anymore," Ukyou taunted. "Tell it to someone who gives a damn. You sure as hell didn't care when Ranma got kicked out of his clan."

As Ukyou said this, she was counting down inside her head. 'Five...four...three...two...and..."

At that moment, Konatsu appeared, rushing through the front door, having returned from a delivery run...or so Akane had assumed.

"Miss Ukyou! Miss Ukyou!" Konatsu panted.

'Right on time,' Ukyou thought as she turned from the fuming Tendou. "Konatsu, calm down. What's wrong?"

"I saw her!" Konatsu panted. "I saw Ranma!"

Almost immediately, Akane spun around. "Where?" she demanded. "Where did you see her?!"

"I don't answer to you," Konatsu replied. "I answer to Miss Ukyou – urk!"

Akane's grabbed a handful of the ninja's dogi and pinned him to the wall, her aura flaring up around her. She was in no mood for arguments. "WHERE...IS...RANMA?!" she demanded, ignoring Ukyou as she reached for her oversized spatula.

"I...I saw him go inside the building where the Nekohanten used to be," Konatsu squeaked.

Akane dropped him and rushed out of the shop. As Ukyou noticed, the enraged Tendou was heading in the direction of the Tendou-ke, rather than towards the Nekohanten.

Ukyou dropped the Peel and rushed over to Konatsu. "Are you okay?" she asked, helping him up.

Konatsu nodded. "How did I do?" he asked.

"She bought it," Ukyou replied. "Akane never caught on to the fact that we just set her up for Ranma-honey. Get yourself cleaned up, Konatsu. I'll let Ranma know that Akane is coming."

* * *

Akane returned home in record time.

Rushing past her father, who was at the moment, in a drunken stupor, she ran up the stairs, past Kasumi's old room, past what used to be Nabiki's room (Soun had cleaned it out and tossed all of Nabiki's belongings – including the duck-shaped nameplate – in the garbage), and into her room.

She removed her clothes and pulled out her yellow karate gi. 'Honor be damned, Ranma is going to pay, come hell or high water,' Akane thought as she stripped her clothes and donned her gi for the first time in two days. She then ran into her father room, and retrieved one of the Tendou family swords. Her mallet would not do this time around. She would hack Ranma to pieces and toss the bloody chunks into the canal.

Now, prepared, Akane exited the room, rushed down the stairs (and passed her still-shitfaced father) and out the gate.

Her next destination was the Nekohanten.

* * *

The Nekohanten.

Akane kicked down the doors, and ran inside. The place was empty, the chairs upturned onto the tables, with the exception of one. Akane looked around the dining area. Ranma was not in sight.

"RANMA! COME OUT AND FACE ME, YOU HONORLESS COWARD!" Akane screamed. "COME OUT AND GET WHAT'S COMING TO YOU, YOU BITCH!"

"Be careful what you wish for," Ranma replied as he stepped from the kitchen. Akane's eyes widened as she saw that her ex-fiance was once again male. "You may come to regret it. And given the fact that you willingly fucked that pig of an untouchable, you have no right in calling me honorless."

"SHUT UP!" Akane screamed as her aura flared around her. "YOU DESTROYED MY FAMILY! YOU KNEW THAT RYOUGA WAS BURAKUMIN! YOU KNEW HE HAD A JUSENKYOU CURSE!"

"Actually, he followed me to Jusenkyou," Ranma corrected, not that it would do any good for Akane, since she was too far gone in her rage. "I admit that I knocked him into the spring, but then again, I was running around acting nuts following my own dip into the Nyannichuan. The burakumin status I did not know until later on. I tried to warn you about his curse without telling you outright. It's not my fault that you were too thickheaded for your own good."

"Do you realize what YOU HAVE DONE?!" Akane screamed. "BECAUSE OF YOU, MY FAMILY IS A JOKE IN THIS STINKING TOWN! KASUMI IS GONE, MY FATHER DISOWNED NABIKI BECAUSE SHE IS WHORING HERSELF IN PRISON, AND WE CAN'T GO ANYWHERE IN NERIMA WITHOUT BEING RIDICULED! YOU'RE DEAD, RANMA! YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!"

"So what's stopping you?" Ranma replied, looking smug. "You already don't give a flying fuck about honor, since you're still using Anything Goes when you were banned following your match. In any case, you're no better than Nabiki." Ranma continued to twist the knife, goading Akane into charging. "No, wait. I take that back. Nabiki **is **better than you...by spreading her legs."

Akane didn't disappoint him. "DIE RANMA!" She charged, sword held high...

...and her left foot caught a hidden tripwire, which caused a bucket of cold water placed on a overhead beam to be upended over her head.

"GAH! THAT'S COLD!" Akane screamed.

It was at that moment, that Akane noticed that something was horribly wrong.

She felt strange. Ranma watched this with an evil grin on his face.

Akane looked down and opened her gi. Instead of a pair of breasts, she saw only a flat washboard chest. When she screamed about how cold the water was, her voice had gotten deeper. Her hands went to her crotch, where her eyes widened in horror as to what she felt.

She was no longer a woman. **She** was now a **he**.

Ranma 'tsk-tsked.' In a perfect imitation of the Jusenkyou Guide, he said, "Too bad. You got splashed with water from Nannichuan – Spring of Drowned Boy. Very tragic story of boy who drowned 2500 year ago." Ranma continued in his normal voice. "The Phoenix Tribe gave me some of the water they managed to save before Jusenkyou dried up. Since you think all boys are perverts, you can be one."

"**NOOOO!**" Akane-kun howled to the sky. She – or rather, he – turned back to Ranma. "YOU BASTARD! DIE, RANMA!"

The now-cursed Tendou charged. Ranma cracked his knuckles. "Since you're a guy now, I'll give you want you always wanted, Akane...I'll fight you for real!"

Ranma didn't hold back. Now that Akane was male, Ranma showed Akane why he was the chosen heir to the school of Anything Goes. The dining area was trashed, since Ranma had also repeatedly slammed his cursed-ex-fiance onto the tables, until there were none left standing. He even bashed Akane with the chairs until there was nothing left but splinters.

Of course, given the fact that Akane was now a guy, she had even greater strength, which meant he could wield that damned katana even faster and more powerful.

Despite all of this, he was still no match for Ranma.

And he could not accuse Ranma of not holding back in their final battle.

If it was a final battle.

To Ranma, it was not even a contest. Whilst Akane had done nothing but break bricks and use Ranma as a punching bag, Ranma had been training and fighting long and hard, fighting people beyond his level, which was why he was one of the best in the school.

Despite all that has happened, Akane still have not learned how to control his emotions, primarily, his anger. And Ranma used that to his full advantage, swatting aside Akane's wild punches and kicks and methodically and brutally took down Soun's heir to the Tendou school of Anything Goes, turning the tables on the now-male Tendou as Ranma turned Akane into his own personal human punching bag.

Ranma's fist slammed into Akane's stomach, causing the newly-cursed martial artist to double over. Ranma then brought his knee to Akane's face, snapping his head back, the end result was that Akane Tendou being sprawled on the ground.

"You never were in my league," Ranma said as Akane laid on the ground stunned. "Why I allowed you to hit me with that mallet I will never know. You will never be the same level as I am in the Art, Tendou. You and your father are nothing but a joke."

"You...you can only cheat to win!" Akane retorted as he managed to get on all fours. "Just like now! You cursed me to turn into a boy!"

Ranma responded to Akane's barb by kicking him in the stomach, making the cursed Tendou to double over in pain. "This coming from a person who uses a freakin' mallet," he mused. "You never acknowledged that I was better than you in the Art. You only pounded bricks and dummies. You are nothing but a thug who would sell her soul to get to my level. You think the world revolves around you? It's time to wake up to your new reality, Akane."

Ranma walked over to the counter and retrieved the Preservation Ladle, full of water. He also picked up the Liberation Kettle and placed it on the table, before turning to Akane.

"Recognize these? Sure you do, since Herb used this item to lock in my curse both times." Ranma continued as he brandished the Ladle. Before Akane could stop him, Ranma splashed Akane with water from the small item, locking her curse in.

Then, much to Akane's horror, Ranma picked up the Kettle and tossed both items into the air.

"RANMA, NO!" Akane screamed.

Too late.

"Mokou Takabisha!"

Ranma's ki blast did its work, as it destroyed both the Liberation Kettle and the Preservation Ladle, destroying Akane's chances of returning to normal. Akane would no longer change back into a girl. Her curse was locked in for life.

"I win, Akane," Ranma said. "You should know by now that I don't believe in the 'no-win scenario.' If you or your family had supported me, then I wouldn't have gone this route. You made your bed, bitch. Now lie in it."

Ranma's fist struck Akane in the temple, knocking him out cold. To add insult to injury, Ranma stripped Akane of his gi jacket and sports bra. A final indignity.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen," Ranma mused to himself, "it's time for our grand finale."

Ranma then picked Akane up and slung the unconscious man over one shoulder, before exiting the Nekohanten and heading in the direction of the Tendou home.

* * *

Tendou home, nighttime.

Groaning, Akane's eyes slowly opened. Looking around, the youngest Tendou breathed a sigh of relief. 'What a horrible nightmare. I'm at home. Why am I topless?'

It was at that moment that Akane looked down...

...and screamed.

It wasn't a dream. It was her worst nightmare come to life.

She was no longer a girl. Ranma made sure of that by cursing her with water from the Nannichuan. The memories came back to her in a rush. She had confronted Ukyou earlier that day when Konatsu came rushing in with news of Ranma's whereabouts. She then confronted Ranma inside the Nekohanten, where she triggered a trap, the end result was that she was now cursed to become a he.

Akane then remembered Ranma splashing her with the Preservation Ladle, locking her curse in, destroying her femininity...right before destroying both the Ladle and the Liberation Kettle before her eyes.

He leapt out of bed and ran into the bathroom, running past Soun, now sober. Akane dashed into the furo, and filled the bucket with hot water. He then splashed himself with the water, praying that Ranma had been messing with him.

No change. Akane was still male. Getting desperate, Akane tried again, but with the same results.

"No..." Akane moaned. "This can't be happening!"

It was at that moment, Soun rushed into the furo. "Akane's what..." Soun's comment died on his tongue as he looked at the stranger inside his furo. The boy looked an **awful **lot like Akane...save that he was male.

"A...Akane?" Soun sputtered. "Is...that...you?"

"Ranma cursed me with water from Jusenkyou when I found him. I fought him and I lost," Akane explained. "Then he destroyed the Ladle and Kettle in front of me! I'm stuck like this for life!"

Soun paled. His daughter was gone, taken from him by Ranma. And to make things worse, Akane had broken the conditions set by Sonia following his match days earlier, resulting in the irreversible loss of face shoud this ever gets out.

And since this was Nerima, Soun knew that it would get out that Akane had broken her...or rather, **his** word.

If anyone was present, they would have noticed a complete change in Soun Tendou. Given what has happened with his youngest daughter, this had the effect Ranma had desired.

It was the straw that had broken the proverbial camel's back.

Soun Tendou had crossed the point of no return.

He stepped back. "Get away from me," he said in a low voice.

"Daddy?" Akane looked puzzled.

"I said get away from me, you...you FREAK!" Soun shouted. "YOU...YOU...I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE! YOU ARE NOT MY DAUGHTER!"

"Dad, calm down!" Akane shouted. "This is what Ranma wants! He wants to destroy our family."

It was too late. Ranma had succeeded in that, as Akane recognized the look in her father's eyes, since it was in Auntie Saotome's eyes when she was taken away following the explosive failed wedding.

Soun Tendou had clearly snapped.

He turned and ran out of the bathroom. Akane followed after him, ignoring that he was still wet from the furo. "Dad! Dad, wait!"

Akane then stopped in his tracks.

Soun had emerged from his room, madness in his eyes as he held a katana, unsheathed in his hands. "I will not allow a freak like you to live!" the Tendou patriarch shouted as he charged, sword held high over his head.

Akane began to backpedal, but tripped over his own two feet, causing him to fall on his backside, allowing Soun to rapidly close the distance between them.

"DIE!" Soun screamed, as he brought the katana down.

Akane managed to roll out of the way, Soun embedding the katana where his transformed daughter's body had been moments earlier.

As Soun pried his sword out of the floor, it gave Akane a chance to escape. By the time he had made it to the bottom of the stairs, Soun had reached the second floor landing and in one single leap, leapt down the stairs, intending on wasting the freak that dared to call himself his daughter.

Akane had knocked over several items, but Soun was relentless in his pursuit, hopping over them or merely slashing them with the razor-sharp katana. Soon, Akane had reached the compound gate, but Soun was closing in.

"Daddy, wait!" Akane screamed. "I don't want to die!"

"It's for the good of the family and of the Dojo! " Soun shouted as he readied his katana. "Through your death, will the family honor be restored!"

It was clear to Akane that Soun had completely succumbed to his madness, believing that with the death of his cursed daughter, the Tendou family honor will finally be restored. Soun slashed as Akane, who barely managed to avoid the wild swings, desperation in the transformed Tendou's eyes, while madness was clearly in Soun's.

'He's going to kill me!' Akane thought as he scrambled back from Soun's attacks. One of the wild swings had left a gash on his arm, which was bleeding profusely.

As Soun charged at Akane, the cursed Tendou quickly reacted.

**WHAM!**

Soun was sent flying back from Akane's one-handed mallet strike, giving Akane the time to unlock the compound door and to make his escape. Soun recovered seconds later and the chase was once again on, Soun bound and determined to kill Akane.

* * *

While Akane led Soun on a merry little chase throughout Nerima...

Ranma watched the scene from a nearby rooftop. Once Soun and Akane were gone, Ranma hopped down and strolled over to the wooden gate. After breaking the wooden doors off its hinges and reducing the door to kindling, Ranma strolled inside and tossed the broken pieces of wood in key locations all over the house. He then went into the kitchen and into the cabinet where Soun kept his sake stash.

After dousing the wood with the sake, Ranma pulled out a box of matches and lit one up. Tossing it to the pile of wood, he exited the house before heading over to the dojo, and doing the same with the challenge gate, destroying it and dousing it with the remainder of Soun's sake before setting it ablaze.

Thanks to the compound walls, the fire would be contained. But given the fact that the fire department was located on the other side of Nerima, the fire would be hard to contain once the fire engines arrived. Ranma had made sure of that. The last thing Ranma tossed into the fires was the dojo sign, before hopping back onto the roof and waited for Soun's return, watching the house and dojo slowly become engulfed in flames.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Akane, despite his injury, had a head start. But given the injury, he would not get very far in Nerima, and given the fact that all of Nerima despised her family, he would not receive any help.

Stopping for a moment, Akane ripped off a piece of cloth from his pants leg and used it to bind his wound before running off again. Minutes later, with his father following the trail of blood, Akane reached the canal. More importantly, the bridge, which was one of Ranma's hiding spots.

Akane made the snap decision. He jumped over the fence, and scrambled under the bridge, just as Soun appeared. Akane held his breath for a moment before Soun ran off, cursing his youngest daughter's name at the top of his lungs, blaming her for getting cursed, for sleeping with Ryouga, even for unleashing the blood feud on her family.

As Soun's voice faded from the distance, Akane breathed a sigh of relief as he looked around. Ranma had used this spot for a place to think, as well as an impromptu campground, as several items were still present...including a first-aid kit.

He retrieved the first-aid kit and began to dress the wound. Once the injury was properly treated, Akane looked through the spare pack Ranma kept there. There, Akane found mens' clothes – aside from Ranma's usual Chinese attire – as well as a sealed envelope, with her name on it.

Akane recognized the handwriting. It was Ranma's.

With trembling hands, Akane picked up the envelope and opened it. Inside was a train ticket , as well as another photo.

This time, his female face as well as her father's were crossed out. Akane flipped the photo over.

_**My vengeance is now complete. Use the ticket and get out of Nerima, or face your father. Your choice, Akane – either a life of exile or surrender to the sword. I don't want to see you dead...however tempting might that be. Your humiliation will be enough for me. Either way, I win. I hope we never meet again. Next time, I won't be as...lenient.**_

Akane choked back a sob. In the back of his mind, he knew that Ranma had won. He had destroyed his family, as well as her own. The Chinese Amazons and the Musk Dynasty were wiped out, and her family's honor was in shambles. To top it all off, now that Akane thought about it, he would not fault Ranma for going into the blood feud.

There was also nothing else that Akane could do in regards to stop his father. Sobbing softly, he pocketed the photo and the ticket and after making sure that Soun was nowhere in sight, made his way back to the pathway and ran for the train station.

Akane boarded the train without incident. However, as the train began to pull off, Soun had appeared, finally realizing that Akane might have headed for the train station.

Soun recognized Akane inside the train car and gave chase. He tried breaking the window with his katana, but fortunately for Akane, the window was made out of safety glass. Soon, Soun reached the end of the train platform and the train sped off, carrying his now-cursed daughter away.

* * *

Akane chose a life of exile.

With no official documents or a birth certificate, Akane Tendou no longer existed. Being raised in a sheltered household had failed to prepare Akane for a hard life on her own. The official town records had Akane declared deceased, with the rumors that Soun had killed her in a rage. But that was hardly the case, as Akane was still alive.

After Akane had arrived safely in Tokyo, she exited the train and disappeared into the city streets. Ranma and Soun's actions back in Nerima had all but made Akane ronin. With no name and no life, He-who-was-Akane had all but disappeared.

* * *

The townspeople of Nerima watched from closed doors and windows as Soun Tendou, bloodied katana in hand, shambling towards the house, laughing and mumbling incoherently to himself.

Akane's attack on Ranma had became known, as was the fact that Akane had been banned from using Anything Goes several days earlier, which had tarnished and ruined the Tendou family honor beyond repair.

"hehehehehehehehehehe," Soun chuckled to himself, lost in his own world. He had lost half of his grip on reality following the untimely death of his wife. Now, Soun was lost to his madness as he lost the only remaining link to his family.

When he returned to his home, a terrifying sight awaited him.

His home was completely engulfed in flames, as was the dojo. The fire engines were busy dealing with another fire somewhere else in the ward (which was not Ranma's doing), and since Nabiki's blackmailing reached even the Nerima Fire Department, the firemen decided to let Soun's home burn to the ground as a measure of revenge against the Tendou clan.

Soun's sword clattered to the street as he slumped to his knees. "My...my home..." he moaned in dismay. "Not my home..."

He reached down to pick up the sword, only to find that it was no longer there. Craning his neck, he saw that Ranma was behind him, the Tendou family sword in his hand.

In a rare moment of sanity, Soun accepted defeat. "Genma was right all along...it was you...you destroyed my family...and yours...my daughters are gone...you cursed Akane and made Nabiki whore herself out in prison...Kasumi is gone..."

"Nabiki dug her own grave, Tendou," Ranma replied coldly. "She threatened the wrong people. Everything else, I take credit for."

The sanity left Soun as he closed his eyes. "Finish it, Ranma. Send me to my wife."

**PING.**

Soun's eyes snapped open. Instead of Ranma decapitating him, he instead broke the Tendou honor sword over his knee.

Ranma tossed the pieces of the sword at Soun's feet. "I won't kill you, Soun. Death is too good for you. Having you watch as I taken everything from you – your job, your family, your friends, and your honor – **that** is your punishment. Oh, and I have a message from the letch. You are banned from using Anything Goes for life. Live in the misery you have brought upon yourself, Soun Tendou."

Ranma then turned and walked away, leaving Soun Tendou to weep bitterly as his home burned to the ground.

_**Epilogue**_

The following morning, the police and the fire departments arrived on the scene of the destroyed Tendou home. There, they found Soun, seated on the sidewalk, catatonic.

The police acted accordingly. Soun was committed to the Tokyo Mens' Asylum, never to be released, as the police thought that Soun had burned his home to the ground in the aftermath of Nabiki's trial, and that he was a threat to public safety. Soun would remain in the asylum for the rest of his life, silent, never speaking a word to anyone.

Upon his death several years later, he was buried next to his wife.

* * *

Out of all of the Tendous, Kasumi Tendou – now going by the name of Naomi Kusanagi – had achieved some happiness in her life.

Naomi had met a man – a businessman from Vancouver – and after a three-month courtship, married him and moved to Vancouver, where they had a family.

The man did not know about Naomi's former name or her former life as Kasumi Tendou.

* * *

Genma, despite living most of his life on the road, did not last very long as a panda.

The lame, pandafied Saotome was in Okinawa where he had met his untimely end. While wandering through a village, Genma came across a crate full of apples. Unfortunately for Genma, the apples were left out in the sun to ferment, and consuming them had the same effect of drinking down several bottles of sake.

When the villagers tracked down the culprit, they found the panda, floating face-down in a river, dead. Genma had drowned while in his stupor.

* * *

In her fifth year at Tochigi, the woman who was once known as Nabiki Tendou became pregnant and had given birth to Gendo's son. Gendo immediately gave up the child for adoption, seeing as how he was a married man and a child out of wedlock would bring complications to him and his own family. Nabiki would serve as Gendo's toy for more than eleven years, until Gendo ditched her for a more younger woman, upon finding out that Nabiki was pregnant with his second child.

Nabiki would go on to deliver her second child, but regrettably, died from the complications of the childbirth. Her death also had an unforeseen effect – the corruption at Tochigi was finally exposed. Gendo had narrowly escaped prison time by feigning dumbness, leaving his subordinates to take the fall.

* * *

Nodoka Saotome had remained in the womens' asylum for five long years, trying to rebuild her psyche following her family's destruction.

Upon her release, she entered into a Buddhist monastery, where she devoted the rest of her life to prayer and seclusion, and sometimes, wondering where she had went wrong in raising Ranma.

* * *

Ukyou Kunoji remained friends with Ranma, seeing as how she was now engaged to Konatsu following the downfall of the Tendou clan.

Ucchan's Okonomiyaki became one of the more popular restaurants in the town. Soon, the place would expand, and within the decade, with Ranma backing them financially, Ucchan's Okonomiyaki would grow into a chain with restaurants all over Japan.

* * *

As for Ranma...

With the blood feud complete, there was no reason for him to stay in Nerima. After leaving Soun to his own devices, Ranma left Nerima for good, and settled in Okayama. With Happousai's blessings, Ranma opened the Himura School of Indiscriminate Grappling in the city.

In the coming years, the martial arts school would become one of the most respected (if not, unorthodox) schools in the region. Upon seeing the success of the school, Happi retired, naming Ranma the new Grandmaster of the style.

Ranma soon married and had a family of his own. Unlike Genma, he raised his children in the right way, unlike how Genma had raised him in the past.

Ranma had found peace at last.

**END.**

Snafu's notes: And with the end of this chapter, Pride Comes Before The Fall is complete. Special thanks to those who left positive reviews on my stories (over 100+!) and for those who disliked the fanfic because of how I treated the characters, oh, well. Life goes on. With the completion of this fanfic, I can now focus on my other projects.


	7. Chapter 6: Alternate Ending Part 1

A.N.: You thought the story was over? THINK AGAIN! I've thought about it and decided to do a two-part alternate ending to the story. This time, not all of the NWC condemn Ranma. And in traditional Snafu flair, the ending will shock you.

_**Chapter Six – Alternate Ending, Part One **_

Tendou Dojo, hours earlier.

"YOU LOST?!" Genma bellowed to his son, now daughter.

Apparently, the news of Ranma's rematch against Herb had became known to the Tendous, as well as Ranma's parents. What they didn't expect was the fact that Ranma had lost to Herb, thanks to outside interference from his two rivals, and ended up getting his curse locked.

Ranma was facing judgment from the senior members of the Nerima martial arts hierachy.

"It wasn't my fault!" Ranma had objected. "I had the entire match under control until Mousse and Ryouga showed up! They distracted me long enough for Herb to splash me with the ladle, and for those two idiots to jump me from behind."

"It doesn't matter!" Genma bellowed. "A true martial artist is aware of their surroundings! You are a disgrace!"

"Like I haven't heard that before, old man," Ranma muttered. She was already formulating a plan on how to track down Herb, beat the shit out of him and get his curse unlocked.

Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen.

"Looks like the pledge to unite the schools is finished, Tendou," Genma said.

Soun Tendou nodded. "Indeed, Saotome. Ranma is of no use to us now."

"WHAT?! After all the times I've saved your hide, your family, and your home you dare call me useless!?" Ranma bellowed at the older man.

"Don't you dare talk to my father that way you pervert!" Akane shouted.

"Shut the fuck up, you tomboy," Ranma snapped, her patience wearing incredibly thin. "I wasn't talking to you."

Nabiki and Kasumi watched this exchange with worried expressions. Earlier in the week, Nabiki had found out the real fates regarding Tatewaki Kunou and his family. She had received a call from one of her underlings, whose cousin worked at the hospice where Kunou was living out the remainder of his days as a human vegetable.

Kodachi and Principal Kunou were not as fortunate. Kodachi had went insane and had poisoned herself, her brother and her father, upon finding out that their family wealth was gone, stripped from them in a blink of an eye.

Nabiki had her suspicions. They were then confirmed by a friend of hers who worked at the local bank. The person responsible for stripping the Kunou family of their wealth was Ranma himself.

Ever since the incidents with Saffron and the Phoenix tribe and the botched wedding, Ranma had become less forgiving towards his rivals. Nabiki saw the change and was wise enough to stop using Ranma as her favorite source of spending money.

Nabiki had pulled Kasumi to the side and explained how Ranma was responsible for robbing the Kunous blind. What Nabiki did not know until Kasumi had told her that Ranma had caught his father trying to weave another arranged marriage with the two siblings, complete with contracts to marry Ranma in the appropriate forms in exchange for a substantial amount of money.

Ranma had stopped the transaction and had beaten his greedy father within an inch of his life when he yelled at his son for not doing his duty in looking after his poor father. Genma was in bandages for two weeks.

"Everyone has a breaking point," Kasumi had said. "I fear that poor Ranma-kun may have reached his, given all that he has to deal with on a daily basis."

Nabiki and Kasumi looked at the two who had broken the news of Ranma losing to Herb and his curse getting locked in - Ryouga Hibiki and Mousse. Both Tendou girls knew that the two despised Ranma and would do anything to make his life a living hell.

But it was the third person that shocked even Kasumi and Nabiki.

As Ranma was getting chewed out by his parents and Soun, Akane watched the entire debacle with a evil smile on her face. Then both her and Ryouga exchanged a knowing smile, showing that they had something to hide.

Nabiki and Kasumi both knew that Akane was insanely jealous of Ranma's martial art abilities. Could she had known about Ranma's rematch against Herb and used Ryouga and Mousse to set him up?

"You are no son of mine!" Genma shouted once again. "I want you gone!"

Nodoka nodded. "I agree. As head of the Saotome clan, I hearby cast you from the clan. The Tendou-Saotome pact is hearby nullified."

Soun nodded again. "I also agree." He turned to Ranma. "Leave my home, you dishonorable ronin and never come back here again."

This wasn't looking good for Ranma. Hoping she still had some allies within the Tendous, she turned to Nabiki. "Nabiki?"

Nabiki kept her cool expression. After looking at the cursed martial artist for one moment, she turned to her father and the Saotomes. "Ranma is not at fault here," she said. Her Ice Queen mask fell upon the two who had interfered with Ranma's match - Ryouga and Mousse. "You two did not tell us the entire story. Now would be a good time to explain everything...now."

"Because of him, I've seen Hell!" Ryouga shouted. "Ranma got what he deserved!"

Nabiki frowned. "That's starting to get old, pig boy. Either come clean or else I'll truly show you hell."

Akane, in the meantime, was looking at this exchange with a worried expression on her face. Of course she knew about Ranma's rematch against Herb long before Ryouga and Mousse did. But she wasn't worried about Ranma.

"Nabiki!" Akane admonished. "Stop picking on Ryouga! Why are you defending that honorless bastard for? He got his curse locked in! He is of no use to the family or to the school!"

Nabiki slowly turned towards her younger sister. Normally, that line was reserved for Ranma. Akane never said that to her. Kasumi had also noticed how Akane had addressed Ranma and frowned.

Sure enough, Ryouga folded. After all, Nabiki knew about his curse and she would not think twice about exposing the pig to Akane.

"It's true," the Lost Boy confessed, which turned Nabiki away from her sister. "Mousse and I interfered in his match. When Ranma was distracted, Herb cursed him with the Ladle. Once Herb knocked Ranma out cold, we came here straightaway."

Cologne, who had planned on reinstating the Kiss of Death on Ranma, frowned at this confession. "Is this true, part-timer?" she asked Mousse.

"I did it for Shampoo," Mousse defended. "Saotome does not deserve her! If Ranma had his curse locked in, then Shampoo would be mine!"

That earned him a whack over the skull from Cologne.

"You fool!" the Joketsuzoku matriarch shouted. "You dare to interfere in a match of honor?! You almost made me pass judgment on an innocent man!"

Nodoka, in the meantime, had a look of genuine regret on her face. She turned to Ranma and bowed to her cursed son. "Ranma...forgive my lack in judgment. I did not know. This changes everything in regards to this matter. Because of this, I am reversing my judgment."

"It still doesn't change the fact that Ranma's curse is now locked in," Genma pointed out. "He is of no use to us if he is a girl for the rest of his life!"

"That is up for me to decide," Nodoka disagreed. "Remember that I am the head of the clan, not you. This confession puts a whole new perspective on this matter. Ranma is not at fault here. The blame lies with those two idiots," she finished, glaring at the Lost Boy and the myopic weaponsmaster. Nodoka turned towards the two rivals, her thumb on the katana's guard. She pushed it, exposing an inch of razor-sharp Japanese steel. "What I want to know is...why?" she demanded.

"Auntie Saotome!" Akane shouted, "stop picking on Ryouga! He's been through enough with Ranma picking on him most of the time. Why are you defending that honorless bastard for? He got his curse locked in! He is of no use to the family or to the school!"

Nodoka turned to Akane. "Remember that is my child you are insulting. If you know something about this, then you better confess."

Soun spoke in his daughter's defense. "Why are you harassing Akane? She is not the problem here! Leave her alone!"

"I agree," Genma concurred, sweating bullets. "The boy is the focal point of this conversation here."

"You're hiding something, imotou-chan," Nabiki deadpanned. "Since when did Ranma intentionally pick on Ryouga, hmm?"

"After all," Kasumi cut in, "it's always Ryouga screaming 'Ranma, prepare to die,' right? You know something we don't know, do you?"

Akane took a step back. "I...I don't know what you're talking about."

Cologne then stood beside Nabiki. "You're a lousy liar, Tendou. Explain yourself. Now."

Akane glared at the old woman. "I don't have to explain myself to you, old hag. You know how Ranma likes to pick on poor Ryouga! Ranma is a sex-changing freak!"

Before anyone could say anything, they caught the end conversation between Shampoo and Mousse.

"Stupid duck-boy! You dare interfere in Airen's fight with Musk prince?!" the Chinese Amazon shouted as she pummeled the myopic weaponsmaster with a bonborri.

"But Shampoo," Mousse whined, despite the pain. "I did it all for you! When Akane told me about Ranma's rematch against Herb and that she wanted him gone no matter what the cost, Ryouga and I decided to interfere! I did it for you, Shampoo!"

"You no better than...huh?!" Shampoo stopped in mid-swing, Mousse forgotten as she turned towards Akane, anger in her eyes. "Violent kitchen destroyer set Airen up?!"

Ranma looked at Akane, betrayal in her eyes. "Is this true, Akane? You set me up?!"

All eyes were on Akane at this moment, shocked at this new development.

Akane glared back at Ranma. "You're damn right I did!" she snarled, ignoring the looks from her family and Nodoka. "I wanted you gone! I never wanted the engagement to you! You think all those times I had gotten kidnapped, I wanted you to save me? I ALLOWED MYSELF TO BE TAKEN, BAKA! I was the best martial artist in Nerima! Everyone talked about me! Me! Then YOU showed up and I was nothing more than a footnote! I should be the heir to the full school of Anything Goes! I hate you, Ranma! I wish you were never born! I would rather marry that fat panda of a father before I would marry you!"

Ranma looked at Akane for one long moment. Then her look changed from that of betrayal to something similar to Nabiki when she knew something about someone that did not wished to be known by the public.

Cologne looked at Soun. "Your youngest daughter has brought great shame and dishonor to your home, Tendou."

"But...but..." Soun sputtered.

"No 'buts!'" Cologne snapped. "Your youngest has tried to ruin the life of Son-in...wait...Ranma so many times. You, as her father, cannot let this travesty go unpunished."

"She's right, Dad," Nabiki concurred. "You and Genma preach to Ranma about preserving the family honor, but do nothing when it comes to Akane. I can freely admit that I have made a lot of yen off of Ranma, including my role in the failed wedding. But this is going to far, even for my tastes. She tried to incapacitate Ranma, not by killing him but for a martial artist, but by giving him a fate worse than death."

Kasumi nodded. "Indeed, Father. I am ashamed to call you my sister, Akane."

"But...she is my heir to the Tendou school," Soun moaned. "The schools must be joined. The boy broke the curse once already. He can do it a second time."

Nodoka shook her head. "My previous decree still stands. The Saotome-Tendou agreement is now null and void. I will not allow Ranma to marry such a disrespectful and spiteful child."

"How dare you!" Soun shouted. "Apologize to Akane right now!"

"You support your own daughter, despite the fact that she nearly used us to destroy my son?" Nodoka asked, shocked. "Then you are no better than she is."

"At least Soun did not cheat on his wife," Ranma sniped. "Despite the fat panda's multiple engagement scam, I tried to uphold the family honor by accepting the engagement between the two schools. Akane, on the other hand, not only tried to eliminate me by any and all means, but she also spread her legs for pork-breath over here," she added, jerking a thumb to Ryouga. "Not only is Akane a liar and a cheat, you can also add 'whore' to the list. Why else would she use all of you to get rid of me? So she could get Ryouga installed as the heir to Anything Goes, eventhough he does not practice the style."

"SHUT UP!" Ryouga shouted, lunging for Ranma...

...only to be intercepted by Cologne, who incapacitated the charging fighter with a blow to the skull, knocking him out cold.

Nabiki, on the other hand, was in a state of shock. Here she prided herself in finding out everyone's dirty little secrets, but to have her sister sleep around with Ryouga behind her back without her knowing it, that was an insult to her pride and skills as a mercenary

Nabiki also knew that Ranma could never tell a lie to save his life. As many times he had stuck his foot in his mouth, Ranma could never lie with a straight face. Akane, on the other hand, she could have their father wrapped around her finger. It was a miracle that Akane did not accuse Ranma of rape.

But she could always get the info she needed out of Ryouga, if Akane didn't want to talk.

As Ryouga shook the cobwebs out of his head, he found himself face-to-face with Nabiki. "Ryouga..." the Ice Queen drew out his name. "Tell me the truth. You only get one chance at this. Did you sleep with Akane, knowing full well that she was engaged to Ranma?"

Ryouga noticed that she was holding a glass of ice-cold water in her hand, and caught the hidden meaning – lie to Nabiki and she will reveal the curse to Akane.

"Fuck off, Nabiki!" Akane shouted. "Mind your fucking business!" Turning to Ryouga, ignoring the shocked look of the others, she said, "Don't say anything, Ryo-chan!"

If Ranma was an expert of sticking his foot in his mouth, then Akane wasn't that far behind.

Ryouga sighed. Shoulders slumped, he confessed. "She came onto me. Akane would mallet Ranma out to Kami-knows-where and she would cook, driving the family out of the house, allowing us some time alone."

"How long has this been going on?" Nabiki demanded.

"It was after the old ghoul used the Cat's Tongue point on me," Ranma replied coldly. Reaching into subspace, she pulled out several photos and tossed them to the ground. "I wanted to see how far Akane would go. In effect, I gave her enough rope to hang herself."

Nabiki picked up the photos. Even she had to admit that Ranma had taken pretty decent pictures, despite the fact it was that of her traitorous sister doing the nasty with the pig while inside the public bathhouse late at night.

Akane, however, was pissed. Her perfect plan was coming apart at the seams. "YOU IDIOT!" she shouted at Ryouga. "I HAD EVERYTHING PLANNED DOWN TO THE LETTER! YOU HAD TO OPEN YOUR GODDAMN MOUTH AND RUIN EVERYTHING!"

Nabiki, in the meantime, was passing the photos around to Nodoka and the others. The temperature in the room fell several degrees as Akane's dishonor became more and more evident.

Akane turned towards the cause of her ire. "RANMA, YOU BASTARD!" She pulled out her mallet and charged...

...only to have Ranma backhand her to the floor, the mallet flying from her hands. Ryouga tried to attack Ranma, but was stopped by both Cologne and Nodoka.

"You just don't know when to shut up your mouth, Akane," Ranma snapped. "But I'll bet pig-boy here isn't complaining about how you use that filthy mouth of yours." Ranma turned to Ryouga, who stood petrified in place. "I haven't forgotten about you, Ryouga. I tried to give you the chance to break it off with Akane. But you refused. Now...I'm gonna destroy your happiness, as you tried to do to me."

The aqua-transsexual martial artist once again reached into her subspace and produced a manila folder. He handed it to Nabiki. "Out of curiosity, I did some research on Ryouga's family, to see where their directional curse came from. I stumbled onto this little damning piece of info by accident."

"No...NO!" Ryouga shouted, realizing what Ranma had planned. "You CAN'T!"

Too late. Nabiki had stumbled onto the once piece of info that Ryouga feared even more than revealing his curse to Akane.

"You son-of-a-bitch," the middle Tendou sister seethed between her teeth, glaring at Ryouga. "You...you...you** GODDAMNED BURAKUMIN!**"

This caught Genma and Soun's attention. "What...? You mean he is one of...**them**?" the Tendou patriarch asked.

Ranma nodded. "His family came from a long line of undertakers and leather tanners. I found out about this before Herb challenged me again. Government records doesn't lie. I even researched my own family tree. Fortunately, my family is not of untouchable status."

Kasumi looked at the photos and family records. "Oh, my. Akane, you have tarnished our family name by associating yourself with a burakumin. Ranma was trying to do the honorable thing by keeping you away from him, but instead, you did the opposite."

Nodoka nodded. "Indeed. My child was right in calling you a whore, Akane. And with an untouchable, of all people!" She looked at Soun. "Still think that Akane needs to be protected, Tendou? She has whored herself to a undesirable. Soon, everyone will find out what has happened here, and the stain of disgrace will be there to see."

Soun got what Nodoka was saying. "Unless...honor demands that the stain on the clan's honor is removed," he finished.

Akane did not like where this was going. "Dad...?"

Soun stood upright, jaw set. He looked like the man he once once a decade earlier before his wife's passing. Looking at Akane, he made his judgment. "You have brought dishonor on not only the Tendou name, but on the pride and honor of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts by flaunting yourself like a cheap slut to Ryouga." he pointed towards the door. "Get out of my house. I disown you. You are no longer my daughter."

Akane took a step back as if she was stung. She looked at her sisters, hoping that they would support her. "Kasumi...? Nabiki...? Please...don't let Daddy throw me out! Please!"

Nabiki's Ice Queen mask was back in place. "You made your bed, Akane. Now lie in it."

Kasumi shook her head. "I am sorry, Akane. But the others do have a point. You have to leave, or else the dishonor will tarnish our family name."

In an instant, Genma tossed a hastily packed suitcase at Akane's feet. "Get out!" he shouted. "You are no longer welcome here!"

Nodoka nodded. "You are nothing but a tramp. You are no longer welcome here. You show your face here, you will be forced to commit seppuku in order to preserve the Tendou clan's honor. Ryouga Hibiki will be killed outright should he ever show his face here again."

Ranma watched this with a smug grin. "The both of you deserve each other," she said. "Oh, and one more thing, Akane..."

Ranma snatched the glass of water from Nabiki's hand and tossed it onto Ryouga. Akane's eyes nearly bugged out of her sockets when she saw the miniature black piglet came squirming out of the soaked clothing.

Almost immediately, she knew. She knew why Ranma had snuck into her room with a kettle of hot water whenever P-chan showed up. She knew why Ranma addressed Ryouga as P-chan and vice versa. Ranma had been trying to protect her and she had abused him for trying to do the right thing.

Akane's screams were heard all throughout Nerima.

"YOU'RE P-CHAN?! YOU SLEPT WITH ME AS A PIG, YOU HENTAI! I'M GONNA KILL YOU, RYOUGA!"

That's when all hell broke loose.

Akane started to chase after Ryouga, only to get bushwhacked by Shampoo. Mousse had attacked Ranma from behind by using the White Swan Fist, only to have Cologne incapacitate him by tossing cold water on the duck and knocking him out cold.

Shampoo, in the meantime, was chasing after Akane. The now-disowned Tendou, seeing the buxom Chinese Amazon closing in on her, pulled out her trump card...

...as Shampoo found out as Akane sent her flying back with a foot to the face.

"Dammit," Ranma cursed, knowing what that meant. "She's got that battle doji on again!"

Akane then made a beeline towards Ranma, knowing full well that she was the stronger of the two with the doji on. What pissed Ranma off was the fact that Akane had knocked Nodoka to the side when she tried to stop the rampaging Tendou.

"Mom!" Ranma shouted as he rushed to her fallen mother.

But Akane stood in her way. Having no choice, Ranma had to fight Akane.

As the former couple fought, another person joined in the fray. Following a successful panty raid, Happousai arrived to see the Tendou Dojo in chaos.

"HOTCHA!" Happi shouted, leaping for Ranma's bosom...

...only to be intercepted by Cologne.

"You hentai," Cologne growled. "We got a serious problem here." Before Happi could say anything, Cologne gave him the story so far, telling him everything.

For once, the ancient hentai was serious. The Anything Goes School was in jeporady thanks to Akane's machinations. He had long seen that Akane was not worthy enough to carry on the school. Despte all of the hell that Happi had put Ranma through, from the gropings to the ultimate weakness moxibustion, Ranma had proven to be worthy to carry on the school's name.

Soon, Akane had broken through Ranma's defenses and sent the redhead towards the compound wall. As Akane moved in to finish off the cause of her hatred and jealousy once and for all, it was Happi and Cologne that intervened.

Happi had stopped Akane's fist with one finger, before using his pipe to toss Akane towards Cologne, who sent her flying out of the compound and into the wild blue younder with the Breaking Point.

"My poor, poor, Ranma-chan," Happi said after the threat was gone. Before he could glomp Ranma, the redhead punched him to the ground.

"I am not in the mood, letch," she growled as she rushed over to her mother. Nabiki and Kasumi were already tending to the Saotome matriarch while Soun and Genma helped Shampoo to her feet.

Cologne checked on both women. "They will be fine," she concluded. "Nothing permanent, thankfully."

Soun, for his credit, had not broken down in tears following Akane's confession and betrayal. Nabiki and Kasumi did have a point.

"Ranma...I'm sorry for all the trouble that Akane had caused you," Soun apologized, bowing deeply. "The blame also lies with me, seeing as how I had not taught her since the passing of my wife." He turned to Nodoka. "As head of the Tendou clan, I accept the Saotome clan's declaration that the engagment is now nullified."

"But...the schools!" Genma sputtered. "Our dreams..."

Soun looked at his longtime friend with a firm look on his face. "This incident has showed me just how blind I really was. It had taken Ranma nearly being disowned for me to look at my own flaws. I left my children to fend for themselves when Makoto passed. What we wanted, Saotome was to live off Ranma's success as a martial artist."

"But it's his duty to look after his father in his old age!" Genma pointed out. "All the trouble I went through training him, it's the least he can do."

Nabiki snorted. "Duty my ass. If I had a dictionary, your picture would be right next to 'freeload.' At least Ranma tries to help out around the house."

"Genma..." This time, it was Nodoka that had spoke. "We are going to have a long talk over duty and honor. Furthermore, there is the multiple engagements you made in Ranma's name, for starters."

Genma sweatdropped.

"Then there is the fact you sold Ranma to feed your own fat belly...oh, and the Cat-fu training, and the trip to Jusenkyou, not to mention the bar tabs that you and Soun had ran up at several bars in Ranma's name," Nodoka finished.

Within seconds, Genma was in panda form, playing with a tire. 'Please don't kill the cute panda,' he signed. 'I can explain everything!'

"And depending on how you explain it to me," Nodoka hissed, "will determine whether or not I divorce you, strike your name from the clan roll, make panda steaks out of you and sell your hide to the Amazons. Maybe I'll do all of the above."

'But it's **Be nice to pandas** week!' Genma signed. 'This is animal cruelty!'

Soun cleared his throat. "So what do we do about Ranma?"

Nodoka looked at her pandafied husband, before looking at Soun. "As head of the Tokyo House of the Saotome Clan, I make the following decree: Ranma has one month to unlock his curse," she stated calmly. "If he fails to do so..." She decided to let that hang.

Cologne also put in her two cents. "If Ranma is successful in neutralizing Herb, then I will nullify the kisses of death and marriage and adopt him into the tribe."

Soun nodded. "That's fair enough." He sighed. "I will erase the stain of dishonor that Akane has brought onto the family. I will have her name stricken from the clan roll immediately."

Nabiki stood up. "I'll work on damage control. As long as Dad removes Akane from the clan roster, the damage will be minimal." she turned to Ranma. "Looks like you're off the hook, Saotome. But I would like to have a word with you before you leave for China."

Ranma shrugged her shoulders. "Fine. We'll talk after dinner."


	8. Chapter 7: Alternate Ending Part 2

_**Chapter Seven – Alternate Ending, Part Two**_

Snafu's notes: I know I tossed in another Fallout 3 reference in here somewhere...and I think there's a reference to Forbidden Siren around here as well...

Later on...

"What is it, Nabiki?" Ranma asked after everything had calmed down for the night.

"I know about Kunou-baka and his family," Nabiki began without an preamble. "I know that your father had tried to get the both of them to sign marriage contracts to allow them to marry both of your forms, and that you sent him to the hospital."

Ranma gave the mercenary Tendou a smug grin. "I guess you found me out. I was wondering how long it would take you to figure it out."

Nabiki returned the grin. "Looks like I had you all wrong, Ranma. I should have known that 'macho jock' act was just a ruse. I'm impressed. But why hide behind a mask?"

"Easier that way," Ranma replied. "Something that fat bastard of a panda taught me – deception for one's own protection. I could have stopped you from taking those pictures of me, but I wanted to see how far you were willing to go. So why did you speak out when the parents tried to disown me?"

"Let's just say that I know the worth of my skin, as well as my family's," Nabiki replied. "And Ryouga? How long did you know that he was burakumin?"

"Just found out recently. I was going to use it as leverage against him, but the rematch with Herb kinda forced my hand."

Nabiki smiled. This definitely put a new spin on things, as she was now seeing Ranma in a new light. His ruthlessness was a near match to her cunning, which surprisingly, attracted her to him even more, despite the curse. "You know...I could convince Auntie Saotome and Dad to put the engagement back onto the both of us," Nabiki breathed as she moved closer to the cursed female. "Power and ruthlessness in a man is a major turn-on for me...aside from money."

"I never knew you were that kinky, Nabs."

"Come back and you'll find out, Ranma-kun." the Ice Queen replied. As she turned to leave, she stopped. "By the way, that debt you owe me...consider that canceled."

Ranma grinned.

Nabiki had one more question. "What happened to Ryouga?"

"Hmm...never thought about that. What **did **happen to pork breath?"  


* * *

Ryouga was still in his cursed form as he ran. The last thing he saw was Akane chasing him. He could never return to Nerima, given what has transpired. Ranma had outed him as being a burakumin. Akane would soon be disowned from her family, and despite getting his curse locked in, Ranma came out on top.

Several days later, Ryouga was wandering through the Japanese forests, now completely human. He was also lost, which was nothing new.

"Damn you, Ranma! This is all your fault!" Ryouga screamed to the uncaring sky.

He never stopped for a moment to get his bearings. If Ryouga had been paying any attention (and he doesn't) he would have noticed that he was at a small village surrounded by mountains on three sides, and a river on the fourth.

If he had been paying further attention, he would have noticed the sign that was written in both Japanese and English.

The sign which read **Welcome to Hanyuda**.

He did, however, paid attention to the air-raid siren that blared moments after entering the town.

It would be the last time anyone would see Ryouga Hibiki alive again.

Days later, one of the survivors from the cursed town would report seeing a _shibito _with a pig's snout and ears where the human's nose and ears should have been wandering throughout the village, firing off green-tinted ki blasts while cursing someone's name...or rather, he tried to, given the fact that he was literally a walking corpse.

* * *

  
While Ranma was away in China, Akane had some troubles of her own.

As she had already found out, if Nabiki wanted to destroy someone, she can do it totally and completely. Nabiki had done it several times before, and Akane herself was no exception. After all, Nabiki knew what Ranma was capable off given how he had destroyed the Kunou clan with ease, and didn't want her family to suffer the same fate.

Nabiki was very through. Using her information network, she had literally cut Akane's support structure from underneath her. In short, she made her now-former sister's life a living hell.

* * *

It had started that following Monday. Akane noticed that something was amiss upon arriving at the school. The Hentai Horde was there, but made no move to attack. Instead, they were all looking at the offending Tendou as if she was nothing but garbage. In fact, the majority of the students and even the faculty looked at her with nothing but utter contempt on their faces.

Akane shook it off as the weirdness of the ward and entered inside.

Too bad it had gotten worse when she had arrived at her classroom. Her friends Yuka and Sayuri acted as if she had never existed.

Miss Hinako was conducting roll call. Akane noticed that she had skipped her name. "Excuse me, Miss Hinako?" Akane interrupted, "you forgot to call my name."

The resident school disciplinarian/ki-vampire ignored her and continued on with roll call. Even Sayuri and Yuka, her friends since childhood, ignored her and carried on their conversation as if she was not there.

It was as if she was a ghost.

By the time lunch came around, she was summoned to the principal's office. Wondering what the hell was going on, Akane answered the summon.

The youngest of the Tendou girls stood before the door that had the words **Riona Hiroyuki, Principal**. Below that was a custom-made sign which had said, clearly to intimidate any offending student sent her way: **Abandon all hope, ye who enter here**.

Akane opened the door. Seated behind her desk, looking rather intimidating, was Principal Riona Hiroyuki. Following the disappearance of the insane Principal Kunou and his two children, months earlier, Riona had been promoted to the highest office of Fuurinkan.

"Sit down," Hiroyuki ordered, pointing to the chair in front of her desk.

"Principal Hiroyuki, what's going on?" Akane demanded. "Why is everyone giving me the cold shoulder?"

"Simple, Miss Tendou," Hiroyuki replied coolly. "They know about Ranma. They know about your crimes against him. And I can't guarantee your safety against the Hentai Horde, should they decide to attack you once again."

Before Akane could say anything in her defense, the school's P.A. System came to life. What Akane heard next made her blood ran cold.

It was a recording Nabiki had made on the day Ranma had fought Herb.

* * *

Inside the front office, one of Nabiki's henchwomen smiled as she played the copy of the tape her boss made, knowing full well of the consequences that were about to fall upon Akane.

* * *

Akane knew she was caught dead to rights. Especially when she had admitted to sleeping with Ryouga and her role in trying to get Ranma thrown out of his family and the school.

"_You're damn right I did! I wanted you gone! I never wanted the engagement to you! You think all those times I had gotten kidnapped, I wanted you to save me? I ALLOWED MYSELF TO BE TAKEN, BAKA! I was the best martial artist in Nerima! Everyone talked about me! Me! Then YOU showed up and I was nothing more than a footnote! I should be the heir to the full school of Anything Goes! I hate you, Ranma! I wish you were never born! I would rather marry that fat panda of a father before I would marry you!"_

Then the P.A. System cut off once the fight began.

"Miss Tendou, I am very, very disappointed in you," Hiroyuki drawls. "You have not only brought disgrace upon yourself, but onto this school by simply showing up. I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Since you're pretty much a ronin, your school records have been destroyed on my orders. You are no longer welcome here at Fuurinkan."

"WHAT?!" Akane screeched. "You can't just throw me out!"

Hiroyuki's eyes flashed dangerously. "Really?"

* * *

Akane wasn't thrown out of Fuurinkan.

Instead, she was literally **chased **out of the high school by the faculty, the kendo club (wielding live steel), the martial arts rhythmic gymnastics team, the Hentai Horde and the faculty, led by Principal Hiroyuki, while the students pelted her with their bentos.

Akane would never step foot inside Fuurinkan High School ever again.

* * *

The Nekohanten – three days later...

Cologne read the telegram that had been delivered to her minutes earlier. Shampoo was busy cooking, preparing for the lunch rush.

**Elder Ku-Lon. The Musk has been wiped out. Prince Herb slain. Saotome boy's curse now unlocked. Chinese military finished the job the Saotome boy began. Elder Kon-diz-sho-ner.**

Following the incident at the Tendou Hall, Cologne had called Ling-Ling and Lung-Lung to Japan to help maintaining the Nekohanten. At the moment, the two twins were assisting Shampoo inside the kitchen. Mousse was in his cursed form, Cologne using both the Cat's Tongue and the Ultimate Weakness Moxibustion points on him before locking him in a cage.

Cologne had notified the Joketsuzoku Council about Mousse's crimes in regards to Ranma. The council had agreed on Cologne's decision to lift the Kiss of Marriage (since Shampoo was in no position to give it to Ranma anyway, since she was knocked out by her own weapon), and also agreed to make Ranma a full member of the Chinese Amazons, given the fact that he was a 'blooded warrior' and that staying on his good side meant that the tribe would continue to exist.

However, along with the notice regarding Rama's status in the Chinese Amazons, the council has passed judgment on Mousse, for his crimes of aiding the Musk Dynasty (albeit inadvertently), who had been bitter enemies since the Joketsuzoku was formed. To aid the Musk was simply treason, and Mousse had to pay the ultimate price.

Cologne placed the telegram inside her robes and pogoed into the kitchen. Picking up the sharpest meat cleaver she could find, she hopped over to the captive Mousse.

When the lunch rush started, there was a special on Peking duck that day. As it turned out, it was the day's best seller.

* * *

Tendou Compound, two days later...

Following the 'disappearances' of Mousse and Ryouga, Ranma had returned to Nerima.

He had also returned with a flask of cursed water pilfered from the Musk – water from Nannichuan – as well as the two relics which had started this whole mess in the first place, the Preservation Ladle and the Liberation Kettle.

The first people to greet him upon returning to the Tendou compound were his parents and Soun. Kasumi was out delivering a plate of cookies to Tofuu and Nabiki was away at Toudai.

Genma was the first to say something to Ranma when he noticed the flask of Jusenkyou water. "Boy! You found some water from the Spring of Drowned Man for your poor old father?"

Ranma shook his head. "That's not for you. You of all people know that the curses mix. The Guide and Cologne said so."

Before Genma could moan about what a 'dishonorable son' he had, Nodoka silenced him by smacking him in the back of his head with her katana's scabbard, knocking him unconscious.

"Welcome back, Ranma," Soun said.

Nodoka embraced her son. "Elder Cologne told us what had happened. The Amazons had sent her a note by pigeon telling of your exploits. I am very proud of you, son."

Ranma hugged his mother back. "Thanks, Mom."

Nodoka then answered Ranma's unspoken question. "Akane has not been seen in town since Nabiki had her kicked out of Fuurinkan. Ryouga's also gone as well. Elder Cologne told us that Mousse has already been 'taken care' of and even dropped off some Peking duck." She shot off a glare towards Soun and Genma. "Apparently, those to idiots ate the duck without offering none of us some."

Ranma had a pretty good clue as to who the duck was, but kept his mouth shut.

"Oh, my. Welcome home Ranma-kun," Kasumi said as she entered the living room. Nabiki was also with her, having returned from her university classes.

"So you're finally back, Saotome," Nabiki said as she dropped her backpack.

Ranma nodded. "Yeah. Sit down. I'll explain everything over tea."

* * *

Ranma didn't leave nothing out. In a twist of fate, he defeated the Dragon Prince and as an extreme measure of payback, used the ladle to lock in Herb's curse, while using the kettle to free his own. Dressing Herb up in one of his usual Chinese-style outfits, he made sure that Mint, Lime, and most of the Musk soldiers saw him before running off with his hostage.

Upon catching up with what the Musk thought was Ranma in his cursed form, they had all but ripped him apart. When they found out that it wasn't Ranma, but rather their transformed prince that they had killed, the Musk Dynasty was in an uproar.

Unfortunately, their outrage wasn't going to last long.

Knowing full well that he could not face the full strength of the Musk Dynasty by himself, he simply turned to the local Communist Party's office and dropped the location of the Musk into their laps. Luck was with Ranma that day, since the Musk was responsible for several kidnappings and even the murder of the son of a Party official.

It was indeed overkill, but the Chinese Air Force did its job, unleashing a deadly salvo upon the Musk, while the People's Liberation Army conducted the mop-up.

But not before Ranma had ransacked the Musk, relieving them of their jewelery and martial arts scrolls and tomes.

The former is what was currently scattered all over the table, since Ranma had upended one of duffel bags her carried with him, spilling priceless gems, gold and everything else upon the table.

Even the prim and proper Kasumi was shocked. "Oh..my..."

Nabiki was practically drooling at the sight. The pieces were worth billions of Japanese yen, more than enough to pay off the family home, send Kasumi to college and what not.

Then Nabiki did something that not even Ramna was expecting.

She literally tackled Ranma to the floor and engaged him in a passionate round of tonsil hockey. Ranma was shocked at first, but quickly responded.

This, of course led to...

"Waaahh! The houses will be joined!" said the human waterfall.

Nodoka, on the other hand, pulled out a pair of victory fans and danced around the room. "Wai, wai! My son is so manly!" she gushed.

Genma, on the other hand, was still out like a light.

After a minute, Ranma broke off the kiss and looked at Nabiki. "Is this what you had in mind, Nabs?"

"Pretty much," the mercenary Tendou replied.

"Fine. I'll accept the engagement to you on one condition," Ranma said. "The blackmailing and betting pools stops now. You can still sell information, but the blackmailing and racketeering has to stop."

"Deal," Nabiki agreed.

After all, with the jewels Ranma and swiped, it was more than she and her pools have made many times over.

She then resumed her liplock on Ranma.

* * *

The reason why Ranma had a flask of cursed Jusenkyou water soon became clear. He knew from experience that Akane was something of a sore loser and would soon return to get her revenge upon not only Ranma, but her former family and all of Nerima.

So why change your traitorous ex-fiancée into something she despises the most?

Of course, Akane could not do it alone. She needed allies. Ryuu Kumon was out of the question. Happi as well since he had kicked her out of the Anything Goes School.

That left Pantyhose Tarou.

* * *

Ranma's intuition proved to be correct. Two months later, Akane had struck, with the monstrous form of Pantyhouse Tarou as backup.

But thanks to Ranma, he had seen this coming.

With the aid of Happi and Cologne, the pseudo-winged minotaur with the tentacles on its back was subdued. Akane, in the meantime, had charged at Ranma, prepared to rip apart her former fiance limb from liimb.

Ranma simply sidestepped the attack and tossed Akane to the ground. Then, before Akane could do anything, Ranma splashed her with a cupful of Jusenkyou water.

"GAH! THAT'S COLD!" Akane screamed.

It was at that moment, that Akane noticed that something was horribly wrong.

She felt strange. Ranma watched this with an evil grin on his face. Even the Tendous and Saotomes were shocked to see this strange turn of events. Not that Akane didn't ave it coming.

Akane looked down and opened her gi. Instead of a pair of breasts, she saw only a flat washboard chest. When she screamed about how cold the water was, her voice had gotten deeper. Her hands went to her crotch, where her eyes widened in horror as to what she felt.

She was no longer a woman. **She** was now a **he**.

Ranma 'tsk-tsked.' In a perfect imitation of the Jusenkyou Guide, he said, "Too bad. You got splashed with water from Nannichuan – Spring of Drowned Boy. Very tragic story of boy who drowned 2500 year ago." Ranma continued in his normal voice. "Since you think all boys are perverts, you can be one."

"**NOOOO!**" Akane-kun howled to the sky. She – or rather, he – turned back to Ranma. "YOU BASTARD! DIE, RANMA!"

The now-cursed Tendou charged. One Kachuu Tenshin Amaguriken barrage and Akane was out cold. Thenn Ranma locked Akane's curse in using the Preservation Ladle and destroyed both the ladle and kettle, locking Akane's curse in for life.

Of course, when Akane came to and found out that Ranma had taken her womanhood from her, she had all but snapped.

Within minutes, the authorities were called and Akane was taken away in a straitjacket, his destination being the mens' asylum for the insane.

He was also ranting at the top of his lungs, struggling against the burly orderlies, but to no avail.

"The sky will fall, the Earth will rise! The stars will shine open their toothy grins and caress the sun with their love!" Akane turned to one of the orderlies, who paid him no attention. "You don't know, you can't know! Little fools, you with you knew! YOU WISH! BUT ONLY I KNOW! ONLY ME! ONLY ME! ONLY MEEEE!"

That was the last anyone in Nerima would ever see of the former Akane Tendou again.

As for Tarou, after being doused with hot water, Happi conceded and granted Tarou's request for a change in name. He returned to China, back to his mother's village.

Things in Nerima had calmed down afterward. Nodoka had ordered Genma to make reparations to those who he had cheated on pain of seppuku. Kasumi had entered nursing school and had married Tofuu in her senior year.

Nabiki had kept her promise to Ranma and had stopped the blackmail schemes and the racketeering, and Ranma accepted the engagement with no problem. Nabiki's choice of dropping her rackets came at a good time as well, since the Japanese government had recently passed several laws in which anyone caught racketeering would be slapped with an automatic fifteen-year sentence. Despite Soun and Genma's pressures to have them married as soon as possible, Ranma and Nabiki decided to hold off on the wedding once their careers were established.

The Tendou compound was paid off, and the Saotome home was also rebuilt. Ranma – with Nabiki acting as his tutor – graduated from Fuurinkan and managed to nail an athletic scholarship to Waseda University, where he pursued a physical education degree. Nabiki graduated from Tokyo University at the top of her class with a degree in business and opened her own business firm in Tokyo. Ranma graduated a year later, also at the top of his class, and with Happi's blessings, opened the School of Indiscriminate Grappling.

A year after Ranma's graduation, he married Nabiki in a private ceremony. This time around, no suitors and fiancees crashed the wedding. Ukyou attended, having made her peace with her father, who acknowledged her as his daughter. Cologne, Shampoo (by this time, she has learned how to speak Japanese perfectly), Ling-Ling and Lung-Lung also attended, Cologne returning to China to run the tribe, while Shampoo and the twin Amazons remained in Nerima, running the Nekohanten.

Inside the mens' asylum, the man formerly known as Akane Tendou was forgotten, and will remain so for the rest of his life.

END.

Snafu's Notes: Finished. Finally! After going through several revisions, rewrites for the past couple of months, I've finally settled on this version of the alternative ending. Well, it's been fun, but now, Pride Comes Before The Fall is officially over and done.


End file.
